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The Auditor General Annual report 2016, found that the FCC was in violation of the first schedule of the Public Procurement Act, 2016, which stipulates thresholds for the appropriate procurement method to be used. It was observed that for the procurement of a vehicle and photocopiers valued at Le69 million and Le83.7 million respectively, request for quotation method was used instead of the national competitive bidding method. The audit builds on improper contracting activities for the contract relating to the construction of a health facility, which was undertaken by the council at Calaba Town. The total contract value (as indicated in the statement of development projects during 2016) was Le1.1 billion. On 16th November 2016, the sum of Le150 million was paid to Kahmarg Construction and General Services. Contract agreement for the construction of the health facility, which was to enable the Auditors confirm the contractor, contract start and completion dates, and the basis upon which this amount was paid were not submitted for audit. They also identified several abuse in respect of asset management, as four motorbikes could not be verified as they were not seen/made available during verification conducted. Registration cards that should serve as proof of legal title and ownership, for 24 vehicles and seven motorbikes included in the list of vehicles and motorbikes under the control of the Council, were not submitted. Additionally, registration cards reviewed for seven motor vehicles and one motorbike had ownership and legal title in the name of private individuals instead of the Council. Delivery notes that should serve as proof that assets purchased, in the amount of Le25.3 million were not submitted for audit. The inventory register was not properly maintained and updated with vital information like the date of purchase, description, amount, location and status. As a result, assets purchased at the cost of Le1.1 billion were not recorded in the register. Freetown City Council has a memorandum of understanding with MASADA Company in 2012 for the general cleaning of the municipality, and clearing of 43 transit points at a cost of Le200million per month. For the period under review, the sum of Le1.2 billion was paid to this company in support of cleaning work carried out. Payment vouchers and receipts in support of the payment in question were not submitted for audit. In addition, monitoring reports from the Environment Officer that should show how effectively MASADA had disposed of its responsibilities were not made available for inspection. Although the Council paid the sum of Le1.2 billion to MASADA, review of the financial statements revealed that the sum of Le11.0 billion classified as Cleaning – other amounts were spent on drainage and street cleaning. This expenditure represents 40% of the Council’s total expenditure. Despite the amount paid, there has not been much improvement in the environmental condition of the municipality as drains and gutters, on which funds were expended, continue to overflow when there is heavy rain. The Auditor General recommended that all waste management contracts entered into by the Council must be effectively monitored to ensure that the desired objectives are achieved. The Monitoring and Evaluation Unit should be provided with the required resources to enhance monitoring activities. “Report in support of cleaning activities carried out by MASADA Company is immediately submitted for public scrutiny and financial resources are prudently allocated to ensure that the implementations of other key activities are not affected.” By Zainab Iyamide Joaque Monday July 02, 2018. |
