Management of public resources, panacea for entrenching public accountability — AuGF

The Auditor General for the Federation, Shaakaa Chira has said management of our public resources is a panacea for entrenching an enduring culture of public accountability.

Speaking at a National Workshop on Trends in Public Sector Accounting, Auditing and Public Sector Reforms organized by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), of the HoR in collaboration with the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation in Lagos, Chira said: “Improved efficiency in the management of our public resources, a panacea for entrenching an enduring culture of public accountability.

“On my part as the Auditor-General for the Federation (AuGF), I am pleased to announce that I have initiated a series of reforms, since the assumption of duties, aimed at repositioning the OAuGF for efficient service delivery.

“At the centre of these reforms, is the timely submission of quality audit reports to the National Assembly (NASS); to enable them to perform their oversights as required by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). In view of the foregoing objective, it was very easy for the Chairman, PAC (House of Rep.) and I to agree on the need to organise this workshop to further entrench, a culture of prudent management of our nation’s financial resources.

“It is on this premise that I see this workshop as a win-win situation for key stakeholders who are desirous of strengthening our public accountability.

“Further to the submission of high-quality audit reports, it is also my determination to make the OAuGF a model Institution, that will earn public confidence through professional conduct of its audit/periodic checks as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and other extant regulations.

“I came to this position because I was well aware of the general concerns of the auditees, being a person that rose through the ranks to become the Auditor-General for the Federation (AuGF). This underscores the first Circular I issued as the AuGF with Ref. No. 928/99/CONF/VO.II/38 dated 2nd January 2024, on ‘CENTRALIZATION OF ISSUANCE OF AUDIT ENGAGEMENT LETTERS’.

“The circular under reference has twin benefits of helping my office to track the conduct of the audit and ensure timely submission of reports as well as reducing incidences of multiple audit visits to one agency in a year.

“The implication of the circular is that any letter for audit assignment not signed by me should not be honoured and in case you are in doubt of any letter for audit, feel free to contact me before granting access to the team.

“I must add that occasionally, due to public outcry or peculiar nature of some projects/programmes, a special team(s) may be set up by the Auditor-General for the Federation to specifically audit such projects/programmes with a view to submitting special report(s) to the National Assembly. In such situations, you should not be taken aback.

“On this workshop, I want to assure our distinguished participants, that the papers that will be presented and the resource persons were carefully selected to keep you abreast of violations that constitute audit queries as well as the modus operandi of the PAC public hearing.

“Other areas include but are not limited to the rudiments of knowing the reporting framework that is appropriate for your MDA, and an overview of key public sector financial management reforms.

“The resource persons, especially, are practitioners with considerable on-the-job experiences and are more than capable of doing justice to their respective papers.

“Another major advantage of this workshop is that it is coming shortly after both the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Auditor-General for the Federation issued separate circulars on submission of stand-alone annual financial statements by the MDAs with effect from the 2023 financial year. The resource persons from the two offices will attend to all your concerns regarding the two circulars in particular and other matters connected thereto.

“At this juncture distinguished participants, it is my humble appeal that you make the best of this rare opportunity, where the Chairman of the PAC (House of Representatives), the AuGF and the Accounting Officers are in one room for a few days, to x-ray matters that bothers on public accountability. Let us therefore make this workshop very interactive and participatory.

“Finally, I want to thank, once again, the Chairman of the PAC, House of Representatives for this initiative and the Accounting Officers that made it to this workshop. I have no doubt that going forward, there will be improved efficiency in the management of our public resources, a panacea for entrenching an enduring culture of public accountability.”

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