By Sulaiman Jalloh

The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, who doubles as the Chairman of the Public Account Committee (PAC), Hon. Ibrahim Tawa Conteh, has, on Thursday, June 27, 2024, at the new Parliament Building on Tower Hill in Freetown, warned that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has no jurisdictions over the country’s Auditor General’s report.

He made this statement during the latest PAC hearing on the 2022 Auditor General’s Report relating to queries on Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC).

The lawmaker maintained that no Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) should honour an invitation from the ACC for the audit report on grounds that there is no law that mandates the ACC to do so. “There is no law that gives power to the ACC to look into the Auditor General’s Report,” the firebrand politician asserted, adding that, “The Auditor General’s Report is a property of Parliament and the Auditor General works for the legislative arm of government.” The Deputy Speaker furthered that Section 119(1) Act. No 6 of the 1991 Constitution establishes the Auditor General’s Office and Sub-section 5 of the same states that, “Parliament shall debate the report of the Auditor General and appoint where necessary, in the public interest, a committee to deal with any matters arising therein.” “Tell the ACC that it has no jurisdictions over the Audit Report, do not honour its invitation, this report is a property of Parliament, the Auditor General works for Parliament,” Hon. Tawa Conteh reiterated.

Copyright –Published in print in Expo Times Newspaper on Monday, July 1st , 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)