The Special Report of the Auditor General on the Public Accounts for the Financial Year 2023 has stated that, to date, there has been no internal audit into the understatement of revenue for the financial year 2023 by the Ministry of Finance.
The report was prepared by Auditor General Jaiwantie Ramdass and laid in Parliament on September 9. The report was prepared after an overstatement of tax refunds and a subsequent under-reporting of net revenue led to a $2.6 billion discrepancy in the revenue figures for 2023.
The report said adjusted financial statements received on May 29 showed total receipts deposited into the Exchequer Account for September 2023 were adjusted to $11,588,720,312.10, a difference of $2,598,130,761.72 when compared to $8,990,589,550.38 as shown on the Exchequer Account Statements dated January 31, 2024, and April 16, 2024.
It noted there were several discrepancies in authorisation, segregation of duties, reconciliations and monitoring and reviewing related to these transactions.
In terms of authorisation, the report said there was no evidence that adjustment vouchers IDAs (inter-departmental) were signed by the Comptroller of Accounts to authorise changes to the General Ledger Accounts. It said all adjustment vouchers to adjust refunds totalling $2,599,278,188.73 for financial year 2023 were reviewed.
But it was also noted that none was signed by the Comptroller of Accounts as required.
The report said no evidence was seen that debit advice slips, prepared by the Comptroller of Accounts and sent to the chairman of the Board of Inland Revenue, were examined for unusual or material transactions.
'Signatures of preparation, checking, reviewing and approving debit advice slips were not seen on the documents examined. As a result, Audit (Auditor General) could not determine who prepared, checked and reviewed the debit advice slips.'
It said monthly reconciliation statements on the Exchequer Account were not prepared on a timely basis, with an approximate average period of five months before its preparation.
Regulation 13(4) of the Exchequer and Audit Act Chapter 69:01 states, 'Each accounting unit shall have a check staff and an independent internal audit section.'
The report said evidence of internal audit checks was not seen on any documents examined at the Inland Revenue and Treasury Divisions.
'Documents such as vote books, credit advices, debit advices, debit advice slips, adjustment vouchers, Central Bank statements of account, other charges vouchers and cheque listings bore no signs of examination by internal audit.
'There was a reported material misstatement of $2.599 billion in the Statement of Receipts and Disbursements certified by the then chairman, Board of Inland Revenue and the Statement of Revenue from the Treasury Division. To date, there is no Internal Audit Report on this matter.'
The report noted the accounting books and records of the Ministry of Finance were finalised on or after May 14, 2024. It said with the financial statements being r
