Maravi

MoH intensifies financial management systems

MoH intensifies financial management systems
By Florence Bupe
Fri 26 Mar. 2010, 10:10 CAT

HEALTH permanent secretary Dr Velepi Mtonga has assured that her ministry has intensified financial management systems to prevent scams in future.

In her submission to the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee on Wednesday, Dr Mtonga said the ministry had drawn its lessons from the financial scams that rocked the institution and said necessary measures were being put in place to avoid similar recurrences.

“We realise that we need to take financial regulations seriously and execute them accordingly. We have already started taking disciplinary measures against officers who have failed to meet the financial stipulations and we are hopeful that there will be a change in people’s attitude towards public funds,” she said.

Dr Mtonga disclosed that a committee had been established to strengthen financial systems in the ministry as a way of enhancing fiscal and procurement accountability.

She further told the committee that the ministry would recover about K350 million unretired imprest from the terminal benefits of an officer who was implicated in the Ministry of Health scam, but had since committed suicide.

“The Auditor General’s report captured a total of K137 million as unretired imprest from the Eastern Province office (Chipata) but this figure is actually higher, it is supposed to be K350 million,” Dr Mtonga explained.

“We have since instituted measures to recover this amount from the late officer’s terminal benefits through deductions.”

And Dr Mtonga revealed that some health district offices in Eastern Province were forced to get supplies on credit in 2008 due to erratic funding following the death of president Levy Mwanawasa.

She said this had partly led to the increase in the number of queries raised in the Auditor General’s report, but assured that payments had since been made and vouchers were ready for the Auditor General’s verification.

Dr Mtonga said her ministry was aiming at achieving a zero- audit query in the next report.

“We will endeavour to minimise on unretired imprest and missing vouchers as we strive to achieve a zero- audit status in the Auditor General’s Report,” said Dr Mtonga.

Labels: MINISTRY OF HEALTH, PAC, VELEPI MTONGA

posted by MrK @ 3:21 PM