PAC to table report to Speaker

The parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will this week finalise and present to the Speaker of the House, its detailed analysis and recommendations of the 2009/10 Auditor General’s (AG) report which reveals that up to Rwf 9.7 billion was unaccounted for. According to the PAC spokesperson, Jean Thierry Karemera, the committee, which worked closely with the Auditor General in assessing the report, is currently putting final touches on its findings. “Parts of the report we are compiling include a section of recommendations; but we can’t reveal the details until the report is presented to the Speaker,” said Karemera. In the course of analysing the AG’s report, PAC summoned 193 government officials from both the central and local government, to explain their role in the loss of funds highlighted in the report. “Our report includes what the officials told us; what we found out, as well as what measures we think should be considered,” said Karemera. It is still unclear when the Report will be presented to the plenary session. Unlike the hearings that were open to the public, PAC decided to hold its meetings behind closed door sessions. Among those that appeared before PAC included Cabinet Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, the Mayor of Kigali City, Governors, mayors and other senior government officials. The 2009/10 report highlighted weaknesses in the preparation of financial statements where issues such as omission of receivables and payables, omitted bank accounts and balances, errors in books of account, unexplained differences in opening balances and lack of approval in adjusting entries in financial statements, were observed. Other discrepancies include differences between balances in consolidated financial statements, and those in financial statements of individual budget agencies and un-reconciled inter-entity transactions in public institutions. PAC is charged with scrutinising the Auditor General’s report with respect to the use of the national budget and patrimony, and preparation of draft recommendations within six (6) months of the date of submission of such reports to the plenary session. Before the establishment of PAC, previous reports were analysed by the standing committee on Budget and National Patrimony, which then presented their findings to the Plenary Assembly. edwin.musoni@newtimes.co.rw