Better audit: Way forward

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Waliul Huq Khandker Very often government offices and autonomous organisations express their reservations about the quality of audit done by audit parties coming from different Audit Directorates of the government. Similarly, adverse comments like inadequate preparation for audit and incomplete or no response within due date to audit queries issued by audit parties are also made by the Audit Directorates. A realistic appraisal of the whole situation is needed to find ways for improving working relationship between the two, thereby making audit more effective. Blaming each other will not lead to the desired goal. Self criticism and soul-searching is needed and steps are to be taken by both sides to improve the present situation. Let us review the position of an audit office first. Generally audit offices prepare their annual audit plan on the basis of certain criteria like the number of individual offices to be audited, the relative importance of these offices, their budgets etc. Unfortunately the total number of government offices, organisations is quite high compared to the manpower of the audit offices. So, they cannot allocate sufficient days required for effective audit. Dearth of sufficient trained manpower is another handicap. Collecting required data and information for proper planning of an audit is also an area which needs to be looked into seriously. At present, little time is given in planning the audit and more time is given in conducting it in the field whereas the reverse should be the case. In fact, audit of an office should be conducted in two phases. These days account keeping is computerised to a great extent in the office of the Controller General of Accounts (C.G.A). So, in the first phase required information and data should be collected from the office to be audited or its controlling office and the Office of the Controller General of Accounts / Chief Accounts Officer (C.A.O). Adequate time is to be given for this. Computer generated statement of expenditure and receipt of any accounting office vis-à-vis offices within its audit jurisdiction, even at a remote place of the country, is available at C.G.A office these days. So, even specific vouchers for audit can be selected sitting right in Dhaka. On the basis of this and the first-hand information collected from the first visit to the office to be audited or its controlling office, a detailed and thorough plan of audit may be drawn up. This will help understand the office's activities better, which is very important for proper audit, and cutting down appreciably the time to be spent in the field. In the second phase, the field work is to be done on the basis of the plan and information and evidences are to be collected. However, to be realistic, there is another problem associated with it - lower level staff management which needs to be taken care of. Due to poor salary, lower level staff looks after the T.A and D. A involved in tours as an extra source of income and prefer to spend more time in the field. Therefore, to achieve success, a balance between staff aspiration and work requirement has to be struck. The members of the audit party concerned are to be trained properly and prior to dispatching them to field, they should be adequately and thoroughly briefed about the nature of work, their required attitude during the audit. It should be emphasised that audit parties are not police parties and the main purpose of audit is not to catch defaulters but to educate the officers concerned about the rule position through pinpointing mistakes and thereby preventing their recurrence. Their attitude should be friendly and not aggressive, diagnostic not witch-hunting. Some audit parties, composed of more efficient auditors and with a better track record of honesty should be earmarked for important audits. On the other hand, the audited organisation should remain well prepared with all their financial and other records well ahead of the arrival of the audit party. This is an area where they lack in. Actually their preparation starts after the arrival of the audit party and they take the whole affair rather casually. They give more importance in cajoling the audit parties rather than facing them professionally. Secondly, whenever any audit query is issued by the audit party, complete, precise and to the point reply should be given without undue delay. Normally, auditees have a tendency to give reply to audit queries at the fag end of audit or after the audit has finished. This is not helpful for the organisation concerned. Because, in case of any further clarification required by the party, they cannot get it readily since they have already left that office and might be auditing another office at that time. It should be remembered that problems, which can be sorted out at the initial stage through better interaction, become more difficult to solve at a later stage due to increase in the number of stages through which the replies are to be routed and examined. Ignorance of financial rules and regulation on the part of concerned officers of the organisation puts them in a disadvantageous position. They can be easily subjected to any ulterior motive of any person. So, to face effectively such situation the best way is to be well equipped with the financial rules and regulations and answer questions in the language of the questioner. Proper training is to be ensured for this. Finally, due importance should be given to discussion on the draft audit report with the audit party at the appropriate level. Unfortunately this is not happening in all cases these days. Normally, this is done by lower or mid-level officers of the organisation concerned which should be at the senior management level so that they know the audit findings and also can give proper answers to the observations incorporated in the draft report. In conclusion, it may be emphasised that through ensuring mutual co-operation and appreciation of each other's points and views, a proper atmosphere conducive to better audit can be easily created -one that will be beneficial for both sides. The writer is a former Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General (Senior). [email protected]