By Hassan Y. Koroma
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) last Wednesday, at its Gloucester Street head office in Freetown, briefed media practitioners and civil society organizations on issues related to the 2021 Auditor General’s Report.
ACC Deputy Commissioner, Augustine Foday Ngobie, explained the intent of the briefing that was bordering around the 2021 Auditor General’s Report. He said the Commission would continue to be accountable to the people in the conduct of the national campaign against corruption.
The Commissioner of the ACC, Francis Ben Kaifala, registered his dissatisfaction with the constant failure of Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to adhere to the recommendations of the Auditees, as the same issues kept on repeating almost every year.
He continued that the responsibility to act on corruption issues rested on the shoulders of all of them from ACC to other law enforcement authorities who should, at all times, ensure persons were held accountable for their actions.
The Commissioner noted that they had to be serious with their destinies as a people, adding that they must not allow themselves to be held down by the same issues.
The ACC boss commended the Auditor General’s Department for a professional job, saying that the audit report had showed a gourd-hound and that as auditors they were supposed to provide professional opinion and guidance based on established principles.
He furthered that, like other Auditor General’s Reports in the past, most of the issues captured emanated from the administrative lapses as people who should take responsibility to monitor, guide, direct and manage the processes had failed to show the required leadership, and that all Sierra Leoneans must embrace the fight against corruption, willingly by taking deliberate and calculated actions.
Mr Ben Kaifala also highlighted other areas and issues of interest required the attention of the Commission and swift intervention or wherein it had already intervene a lot of them needed a quick-fix approach which investigators were already working on.
The Commissioner stated that those who had not accounted for resources entrusted to them must be prepared to do so now with them convincingly. According to him, those who could not give convincing explanations, failed to provide necessary documentations to the Auditors, but fully aware they must do, they were now going to do so with them at the ACC. He assured the people of Sierra Leone that they would be held accountable.
Commissioner Ben Kaifala disclosed the estimated cash loss of $3,523,588 (Three Million Five Hundred and Twenty-Three Thousand Five Hundred and Eighty-Eight United States Dollars), €183,949 (One Hundred and Eighty-Three Thousand Nine Hundred and Forty Nine Euros), and £752, 859 (Seven Hundred and Fifty-Two Thousand Eight Hundred and Fifty-Nine Pounds was reported at some of the country’s Diplomatic Missions; an alleged estimated cash loss of Le5,610,439,736 (Five Billion Six Hundred and Ten Billion Four Hundred and Thirty-Nine Thousand Seven Hundred and Thirty-Six Leones) was reported in 14 Local Councils; an alleged estimated cash loss of Le. 65,181,048,963 (Sixty Five Billion One Hundred and Eighty-One Million and Forty-Eight Thousand Nine Hundred and Sixty-Three Leones) plus $132,000 (One Hundred and Thirty-Two Thousand United States Dollars) was reported in revenue-generating entities; an alleged estimated cash loss of Le560,204,104,073 (Five Hundred and Sixty Billion Two Hundred and Four Million One Hundred and Four Thousand and Seventy-Three Leones) was reported as tax liabilities and a further alleged estimated cash loss of Le116,238,191,455 (One Hundred and Sixteen Billion Two Hundred and Thirty-Eight Million One Hundred and Ninety-One Thousand Four Hundred and Fifty-Five Leones) plus $338,424 (Three Hundred and Thirty-Eight Four Hundred and Twenty-Four Leones) was reported under the general category.
Commenting on the repetitiveness of the concerns and allegations, the Commissioner also briefed his audience that according to the Report, foreign missions were again indicted by auditors, adding that diplomatic missions had been running as if they were not part of the Republic of Sierra Leone and the policies regulating the operations of public institutions.
He said they did not follow best financial processes and procedures, and assured the people of Sierra Leone that actions would be taken against all those who should account for mismanaged of resources.