The Auditor-General (AG), Mr. Daniel Yaw Domelevo had called on staff of the Audit Service to be resilient despite the risk associated with auditing public institutions. He said this attribute will enable them promote good governance, transparency and accountability in the country.

The Auditor-General made the call when he opened the 3rd Biannual Conference of Regional Auditors in Ho, on the theme: “In the Era of Disallowance and Surcharge, the Role of the Regional Auditors.’’

Mr. Domelevo said the concept of protecting the public purse hinged on four broad pillars namely fiscal discipline, strategic allocation of resources, quality service delivery, and elimination of corrupt practices. He noted that corruption is a “major threat that must be fought” to ensure the development of our country for posterity.

Mr. Domelevo asked the public to collaborate with the Service to enable it achieve its mission. The A-G outlined processes and procedures for auditing public institutions and urged audited entities to report any intimidating or unethical behaviours of auditors to him. He said in accordance with Section 23 of the Audit Service Act 2000, Act 584 and International Auditing Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAIs), an audit report is supposed to be published for Ghanaians immediately it had been submitted to Parliament. This requirement he said, was a legal obligation on the Auditor-General.

Mr. Domelevo said negative bench-marking however, had become the hall mark in public service and wrongdoing had also been accepted as a norm to the extent that “when one does the right thing in the society, people turn to crucify that person”.

The Vice Chancellor of the University of Health and Allied Sciences, Professor John Owusu Gyapong, who chaired the opening ceremony said that audit systems should be strengthened and the Audit Service should be resourced in order to reduce corruption in the country.

In a welcome address, the Assistant Auditor-General responsible for the Volta and Oti Regions, Mr. Raphael K. Darku said that public institutions had been repeating the same infractions year after year with no significant improvement. This lapse, he attributed to the lack of commitment and poor supervision by the heads of institutions. He appealed to Audit Committees of the various Assemblies to work assiduously to minimize the financial management infractions.

In a speech delivered on his behalf, the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Yao Letsa, praised the Audit Service for its exceptional commitment to protecting the public purse.

The two-day conference was to brainstorm ideas and make recommendations that would enhance the work of auditors as well as assist the Auditor-General to achieve his mandate as provided under Article 187 of the 1992 Constitution. The conference was also to provide a platform for key stakeholders to devise robust mechanisms to protect the public purse.