Nimba County District # 5 Representative, Samuel G. Kogar has called on spending entities of government to subscribe to the country’s Public Financial Management (PFM) Law by submitting to the Legislature its quarterly Budget Performance Report.
In a communication addressed to House Speaker Bhofal Chambers, and read during the body’s Tuesday, August 14, 2018 sitting, Representative Kogar alleged that, for the past five years, no government spending entities, aside from the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL), has submitted its quarterly Budget Performance Report to the Legislature for perusal.
According to the Nimba County Lawmaker, the real essence for the submission of the Budget Performance Report is to promote transparency and accountability spending by public institutions which will, in turn, have a trickledown effect on the larger society.
He said for more than five budget quarters, spending entities of government have been in violation of the PFM law and it is about time the Legislature through the House of Representatives address the situation.
“Colleagues, this gross violation should not be allowed to go unchecked because it is in line with the principles of transparency and accountability that these safeguards were instituted by us (legislators) so as to ensure that public resources are properly accounted for,” Representative Kogar intoned through his communication.
He added:
“It is also required in section 7 (d) of the PFM Law which states, “The Liberia Revenue Authority is hereby required to provide regular updates to the Ways, Means and Finance Committee of both Houses on the performance of state-owned Enterprise with respect to their contribution the National Budget.”
Representative Kogar then called on his colleagues (lawmakers) to invite those spending entities before the House’s plenary to give reasons why they have been in gross violations of the PFM law during the protracted periods.
Meanwhile, the House of Representative plenary as per the request of its member (Rep. Kogar) to probe the situation instructed its Committee on Ways, Means and Finance to take seize of the matter and report to within three weeks.
