Monrovia- Comptroller and Accountant General of the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, Elwood T. Nettey, has issued a warning to ministers and heads of agencies to avoid the frequent change for comptrollers and accountants of various government’s spending entities, emphasizing it has the proclivity to hamper the country’s performance in terms of providing quarter and annual financial reports.
By Jaheim T. Tumu
Nettey argued the consistent changes of comptrollers dated back to former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s administration, pointing out that partners have been deeply involved in the process of reforming the public financial management sector and allowing those who have the requisite training and expertise to leave could impede the progress gained over the years.
He cautioned heads of agencies and ministries in respect of the authority and responsibility should not remove comptrollers for any reason, urging them to contact the Ministry of Finance through Minister Boima Kamara.
Said Nettey, “If there are issues and then he will send it down to the department then we will be able to investigate and take the necessary actions. But to say that every minister coming with their comptrollers, is unacceptable.”
He added, “We are acting, we are not usurping people’s functions, we are only trying to protect the various reforms and the gains that we have made from these reforms over the years and where we have outstanding issues and how to stretch forth these issues and make sure that we comply with all of the requirements set for in the PFM act.”
Recently, MFDP through the Comptroller and Accountant General urged government entities to uphold the Public Financial Management Law of Liberia, regarding the suspension, transfer, reassignment, and dismissal of comptrollers and accountant staff in Liberia.
Accordingly, they emphasized the power and authority to effect the change of status (suspension, transfers, reassignments, dismissals) of Comptrollers and Accounting staff squarely lies in the purview of the MFDP, Civil Servant Agency, and the Comptroller and Accountant General.
He said as the head lecturer of government accountants being employed, they have the responsibility to station accountants to give specific instructions to line ministries and agencies with the consent of the ministers as it relates to regulation.
Section 12; (3, 4, and 5) of the amended and restated Public Financial Management (PFM) law of 2019 captioned, stated, “power and duties of Comptroller and Accountant General”, and clearly articulates the authority of the CAG as: “head of the accountant class within the public service to which all accounting staff in that service belong.”
Further continued “with authority to station in any ministry of agency of government accounting staff and shall give general or specific instructions to line Ministries, Agencies, Commissions (MACs) and public officers consistent with the provisions of the act in consultation with the Minister of Finance and Development Planning.”
Nettey emphasized when the new officials of the MFDP assumed office, they decided to follow the reforms because the indicators are benchmarks that would be used to engage the partners as the international community has invested in these reforms in terms of human financial capital.
Said Nettey, “We will live on the side of the law, to be consistent with what the act says, we are just urging the heads of agencies if there are issues that you notice with comptrollers reference us and we will give them due process.”
“If there are issues that beyond that, obviously we have a way to troll, we have a mechanism in place to address comptrollers who are not performing or who have done this contrary to what the ethics say.”
He stressed, “Falling short of that and arbitrarily removing a comptroller, we from the department, we will be reluctant in supporting you and we will not honor any request coming from line ministries and agencies; even recognize the comptrollers that have not gone through the process set forth within the PFM law. “
Speaking further, Nettey said the MFDP is on the verge of submitting the government’s consolidated financial statements to the General Auditing Commission (GAC) by the end of April.
He averred that they are in the process of collecting annual and first quarter reports from line ministries, agencies, and commissions, stressing CSA depends on the comptrollers to generate the reports.
He added new comptrollers that could be brought in by ministers need to catch up with the reporting system and partners have to reinvest by conducting training for them which could delay these deadlines.
He said, “If they are not there to generate the report we will not be able to meet the requirements outlined in the PFM act, that is the combinations of the presentation of the consolidated financial statement to the GAC and the PAC under the signature of the MFDP.”
“And if we can’t deliver the promise, we will not be fulfilling what the act says. Why? It is the sole responsibility of the office because we have to be accountable since we are stalwart of resources entrusted to us,” he said.
He added, “As we said, if we can’t report, if we can’t measure our performance in terms of reporting then obviously we cannot be accountable and if we cannot be accountable, it means that we misused public resources that’s why we don’t want to account.”
