Stakeholders in the academia and auditing sectors have called on the National Assembly (NASS) to adopt the Auditor-General of the Federation’s report on financial activities of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
They made the call at the Public Presentation of a book titled: ‘Auditing the Government: Crucial roles auditors play in promoting good governance’, in Abuja, on Tuesday.
Prof. Sani Usman of the Department of Accounting, University of Abuja, said that non-adoption of the reports by the NASS had hindered good democratic governance.
Sani, the book reviewer and a Professor of Public Sector Accounting, said the book had answered the questions that the academia usually asked about the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAuGF).
He said the book would also help citizens, students and researchers to know the job of the Auditor-General.
The former Auditor-General for the Federation, Mr Samuel Ukura, also appealed to the NASS to act timely on the reports to support President Bola Tinubu’s agenda in the fight against corruption.
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Ukura, represented by Mr Joseph Iorbee, an Assistant Director in the office, called for enabling laws to help bolster the activities of the OAuGF.
The Auditor-General for the Federation, Mr Shaakaa Chira, said the book would help educate young people in the auditing profession to better understand their roles.
Chira said the book would be a reference for researchers.
Mrs Christiana Nwadike, the Chairman of the occasion, said that auditors played critical roles in upholding transparency, accountability and integrity within the government systems.
Nwadike called on auditors to uphold ethical standards in promoting good governance.
The writer of the book, Dr Clement Ojile, said the OAuGF had not gotten the independence and autonomy needed to function well.
Ojile said that citizens had not understood the functions of the OAuGF, saying that the Auditor-General had a crucial role to play in the fight against corruption in the country.
”The Auditor-General is the prime fighter of corruption in other countries because he derives his power from the constitution.
”He has such constitutional mandate to audit all the arms of government,” he said.
He called on Civil Society Organisations, the media and citizens to always demand for actions to be taken on the Auditor-General’s reports.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ojile is an Assistant Director in the OAuGF.
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