Discrepancies to the accounts of several Provincial Councils(PCs) have resurfaced with much disappointment, in a Fiji Live article.
This is an excerpt of the Fiji Live article:
Concern over un-audited accounts
Monday September 17, 2007
The Fijian Affairs ministry is appalled at the status of provincial council financial accounts which have not been audited since 1995.
Executive officer Kini Rarubi confirmed that the ministry is trying to establish why the provincial councils did not get their accounts audited for so long. He said the Independent Investigating Team into Institutions Fijian (IITIF) which was appointed by the interim Government to investigate corruption, is currently looking at this.“Most of these provincial councils have not had their accounts audited since 1995 and this is a concern for us.”
“We are very surprised because we did not expect this to happen as all provincial accounts should be audited every year.” He said the investigation team led by Colonel Apakuki Kurusiga is trying to establish why it took so long for the accounts to be audited.
The team recommended that the process be contracted to private firms so that the financial status of councils are finalised.
Fijilive
A series of Fiji Sun articles presented a somewhat extruded 'blame game' between the Fijian Affairs Board(FAB), Office of the Auditor General and the various Provincial Council.
The next Fiji Sun article follows up with a denial from Ba Provincial Council. The following is an excerpt:
Blame FAB, says provincial council
Fiji Sun
Last updated 6/26/2007 7:46:08 AM
Another province has revealed that if its accounts were not audited, the Fijian Affairs department should be the one to answer as its accounts were sent to them every three, six and 12 months.
The Ba Provincial Council Roko Viliame Burenivalu yesterday said sometimes the ministry used to call some of its council staff to help sorting out the council accounts with the Fijian Affairs office in Suva. He said when he enquired from his staff after returning from Suva they usually told him that they were working with the ministry’s staff to clear out the 2000 and 2001 accounts.
“If there is any lateness in the auditing of accounts then the ministry should be the one to answer,” said Mr Burenivalu. He said sometimes his staff informed him after returning to Suva that council accounts for 2000 and 2001 did not balance. “If the figures did not match than the Fijian Affairs should also answer,” he said.
Mr Burenivalu made the comment after former senator Ponipate Lesavua who is a member of the investigating team that conduct investigation on the Fijian Institution said none of the 14 provincial council had submitted report of the money that the Government provided every year.
Serua Provincial Council chairman Atunaisa Lacabuka said the last time its accounts was audited was in 2000. He said the Auditor Generals Office had audited its accounts and he wanted its council accounts to be audited every year.
The 2004 Auditor General's report overview for the 1994 accounts.
Another salvo of blaming the FAB, was fired from Lomaiviti, Naitasiri, Lau and Ba Provincial Councils respectively.
FAB blamed for non-audited account
Fiji Sun
Last updated 7/5/2007 7:36:13 AM
Provincial council heads have blamed the Fijian Affairs Board for the non-auditing of some accounts. A recent investigation into the Native Land Trust Board (NLTB)revealed that some provincial council accounts were not audited.
Lomaiviti Provincial Council said it sends its accounts quarterly to its head office (Fijian Affairs Board) in Suva, its administrative head, Ratu Filimoni Baleimua, said. Ratu Filimoni said its accounts were usually prepared and kept properly by his staff before they were sent to Suva. “The accounts are sent every quarterly to Suva,” Ratu Filimoni said. “The FAB is responsible for the accounts' audit.”
The NLTB investigation established, amongst other things, that most of the provincial councils did not have audit reports on funds given to them by the State." Tailevu Provincial Council chairman Josefa Seruilagilagi said it had tried to pay a private company to audit its account but was stopped by the Fijian Affairs".
Naitasiri Provincial Council chairman Solomoni Naivalu said that its accounts were usually audited every year. This year's, however, is yet to be audited. Lau Provincial Council's Peni Sokia said it sent its accounts to the Fijian Affairs every month. He said if the accounts were not audited than the FAB should be accountable as it handled all the accounts.
Ba Provincial Council's Viliame Burenivalu said it sent its accounts to the FAB every three months. He said the board should explain delays in the auditing of some of the provinces' accounts.
However, axed Chief Executive of FAB, Litia Qionabaravi defended the Board's track record under her tenure. This is an excerpt of the Fiji Sun article:
Ex-FAB chief defends audit of province accounts
Fiji Sun
Last updated 7/6/2007 4:16:22 PM
The Fijian Affairs Board and the office of the Auditor-General made concerted efforts to update the backlog in the audit of accounts."The board had set out target dates for completion of all outstanding accounts and these were followed up with chartered accounting firms and the office of the Auditor-General," Adi Litia said.
Former FAB chief executive officer Adi Litia Qionibaravi said some of the efforts undertaken include giving out the audit of the provincial council accounts to chartered accounting firms since 2004. She made the comment in reaction to statements by some provinces that it blamed the FAB for the backlog in the audit of its accounts.
Colonel Apakuki Kurusiga, who leads the investigation into the Native Land Trust Board, highlighted the problem.
Adi Litia said the board had set up a special audit unit to facilitate the preparation of information required by the chartered accounting firms. She said it established an audit committee of the board to oversee the progress in the audit of accounts. Adi Litia said training had been provided to provincial treasurers on basic accounting, including the preparation of financial statement.
The former chief executive officer said all outstanding audits could be completed if efforts and action approved by the board are continued. She said the provincial councils, through the Roko Tui, remit their accounts on a fortnightly basis to the FAB.
The feeble defense by Qionabaravi begs the question that, if an audit committee had been formed in FAB to collate date for the private auditing companies; surely there is no excuse to say the data set from 1996 onwards, are yet to be prepared.
With such a lax attitude, coupled with no oversight; it is not surprising to see such a sad state of affairs, prompting a major and long overdue clean-up by the Interim Government.
Fiji Auditor General responded to the former CEO's claim in a Fiji Sun article:
FAB failed to send accounts: A-G
Last updated 7/7/2007 8:37:11 AM
The Fijian Affairs Board has not submitted its accounts to the Auditor-General’s Office for the last 10 years. And that is the main problem of the backlog in auditing its accounts, including that of the 14 provinces.
Auditor-General Eroni Vatuloka said yesterday the delay of the audit went back to the last five to seven years. “We audit the accounts of the 14 provincial councils in accordance with the Fijian Affairs (Provincial Councils) Regulations 1996,” said Mr Vatuloka. He made the statement in reaction to claims by some of the provincial councils stating that the A-G’s Office had not audited their financial accounts.
Mr Vatuloka said the only way to solve the problem was to wait for the committee which had been established to assist the FAB prepare the accounts and send them to his office.
Former FAB chief executive officer Adi Litia Qionibaravi said there had been a concerted effort between the Fijian Affairs Board and the office of the Auditor-General to update the backlog in the audit of accounts.
She said some of the efforts undertaken included taking out the audit of the provincial councils’ accounts to chartered accounting firms since 2004/2005. Adi Litia said the board had set up a special audit unit to facilitate the preparation of information required by the chartered accounting firms. She said it had established an audit committee of the board to oversee the progress in the audit of accounts.
Adi Litia said training has been provided to provincial treasurers on basic accounting including the preparation of financial statement.
Although, the Auditor General appeared to defend his office's reputation; he neglects the backlog of accounts gathering cobwebs on his door step. Seriously, the situation presents a recipe for a storm of financial abuse, which is seemingly trivialized by the Auditor General. Whether or not the Auditor General's office was culpable or was involved in any hint of collusion with the Provincial Councils is a worthy question to ask.
Clearly the issue of retainership, appears to be the common thread between the two vestiges of Fijian Administration. While FAB has failed to retain private Auditors to scrutinize the expenditure of State funds to the various PC's, NLTB is guilty of over retaining the legal services to defend their litany of abuses, stemming from their failure in performing their fiduciary duties.
This is an excerpt:
Serious concerns raised over NLTB costs
Serious concerns have been highlighted in the Fijian Administration report on the amount of money spent by the Native Land Trust Board on legal costs.
The report prepared by the team led by Colonel Apakuki Kurusiga said numerous litigations against the NLTB reflect its inability to satisfy land owners requests. It said that litigation is purported to be the board's main business since it ranks second to salaries and wages in costs to the NLTB.
The report highlights that the 2004 Annual Report of the NLTB shows that legal cost alone is 1.474 million dollars and this depicts the notion that NLTB's main activity is litigations.
It has also been pointed out that over the years, staff turnover at the NLTB's legal section has been drastic and the board was forced to outsource legal actions with three legal firms which were Sevuloni Valenitabua in Suva, Vuetaki Qoro in Lautoka and Harry Robinson in Labasa. The report said that three thousand dollars was paid to Valenitabua as retainer fees per month, Vuetaki Qoro was paid four thousand dollars per month for a retainer and Harry Robinson paid two thousand dollars per month as retainer fees.
The Fijian Administration review team has recommended that the board should not outsource its legal work but hire the services of a senior or experienced lawyer preferably with Land Management qualification. The team was appointed to review the Fijian Administration as part of the President's mandate which includes that the NLTB should be restructured to ensure more benefits flow to the ordinary indigenous Fijians.
Another entity within the FAB is also under the microscope, according to a Fiji Times article:
Caginavanua in corruption probe
1201 FJT
Monday, September 10, 2007
Update: 12.01pm THE contract of Native Lands Reserve Commissioner Ilaitia Caginavanua with the Native Land Trust Board has not been renewed since its expiry last month.
Interim Fijian Affairs Minister Ratu Epeli Ganilau said the board of NLTB decided against the renewal because Mr Caginavanua was under investigation for alleged corruption, according to Radio Fiji Gold News.
"The Reserve Commissioner even though his contract has lapsed...the Board has also not renewed his contract, he is also being investigated by the committee of Colonel Kurusiga on some of the allegations leveled against him during his term as Reserve Commissioner", said Ratu Epeli.
The image below is an organization structure of FAB. Note that the Native Lands Commissioner is under the FAB umbrella. It is the various arms in Fijian Affairs Board which are being currently scrutinized.
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