Parliament’s public accounts committee (PAC) has heard how unscrupulous, greedy, thieving Covid-preneurs and Covid-crats grew fat on public funds while the rest of the populace were restrained from going hunting to feed their families.
The former group are business people who made a kill benefiting from the corruption of being awarded tenders by the latter – their equally gluttonous public servant amigos with whom they looted government coffers and lined their pockets.
In short, the PAC proceedings have unearthed massive and wholesale mismanagement of public funds. This refers to the potential loss or misuse of public funds and raises questions about the integrity of individuals in charge of the funds.
Public funds are protected by following correct financial procedures, and we would like to see those who brazenly and unashamedly flouted these procedures face the consequences.
It is not surprising therefore, that we were disappointed when this week’s public accounts committee hearings were cancelled at the eleventh hour, because an acting chief accounting officer has resigned.
Heads must roll. Those Covid-preneurs and Covid-crats must be named and shamed. They must also face the consequences of their actions.
Basotho deserve a governance system that fosters accountability in public budgeting. This means defining who is responsible for what, when, and how in the budgeting process, such as setting the budget parameters, preparing the budget proposals, reviewing the budget requests, approving the budget allocations, monitoring the budget execution, and reporting the budget results.
As experts say, financial accountability results from holding an individual accountable for effectively performing a financial activity, such as a key control procedure within a financial transaction process. A well-defined financial accountability structure serves as the foundation for establishing effective financial processes.
