CALPED, KAD-LGAM Lauds Kaduna Auditor General For Timely Preparation, Publication of Report
By: Femi Mustapha
The Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment, and Development (CALPED) and Kaduna State Local Government Accountability Mechanism KAD-LGAM has commended the Office of the Auditor General of the Kaduna State for the timely preparation and publication of the annual audit report.
This was contained in a Communique Issued after an Advocacy/Partnership visit to the Auditor General of the state Abubakar Abdullahi on 27th June 2022.
The Communique signed by Seth Luke, Project Officer CALPED, and Usman Adamu, Member Igabi LGAM respectively, stated that the timely preparation and publication of the annual audit report has empowered civil society organizations to effectively demand for accountability and value for money in service delivery.
The statement explained that over the years, there has been increased citizen participation in budget formulation, appropriation, and implementation; however, there has been low participation of citizens and civil society in the audit process.
The Communique stressed that is a welcome development that two milestones in the commitment in the Open Budget in the second Kaduna State Action Plan (SAP, 2021-2023) of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) speak to involving citizens in the audit process; and timely publication and implementation of audit recommendations.
“The reforms under the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability & Sustainability (SFTAS) program have further strengthened the system and operations of the Office in effectively carrying out annual audits.
“Similarly, the amended audit law has also empowered citizens to raise audit alarms to the Audit Alarm Committee, when they suspect fraudulent payments by government institutions.
“Concerns were raised by the civil society that audit recommendations are usually not implemented as this hinders system strengthening and weakens both horizontal and vertical accountability in the State.
“However, the Office of the Auditor-General and the Public Account Committee (PAC) of the State House of Assembly are currently working to clear the backlog of audit reports before the committee.
“The Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) has also supported civil society to engage with the Public Account Committee towards advocating for the timely review of audit queries and implementation of the recommendations.
“There is a need for increased involvement of citizens and civil society organizations in advocating for the timely implementation of audit recommendations.
“The Office of the Auditor-General usually carries out physical verification of projects during the audit process and engages with stakeholders in the community for feedback on performance and value for money.
“CALPED, LGAM, and the media, with collaboration with development partners, are always ready at every level to collaborate with the Auditor General’s Office to increase citizens’ involvement in the audit process,” the Communique stated
