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10 OPINION maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 29 JANUARY 2025 BUILDING strong institutions is a central challenge of devel- opment and is key to controlling corruption. Among public insti- tutions, the National Audit Of- fice (NAO) plays a critical role, as it helps promote sound finan- cial management and, thus, ac- countable and transparent gov- ernment. The Auditor General and Na- tional Audit Office were es- tablished through the Auditor General and National Audit Office Act of 1997, along with pertinent amendments to the Constitution of Malta. The NAO today has become a public oversight institution that audits the government's use of public funds. It is a crit- ical link in the country's ac- countability chain. Accountability for the use of public funds is of fundamen- tal importance to democratic government, usually involving the executive government ac- counting to elected representa- tives in parliament for its over- sight of taxpayers' money. By scrutinising public finan- cial management and report- ing, it assures that resources are used as prescribed. It peri- odically reviews the legality of transactions made by the audit- ed departments and entities. It also conducts performance au- dits to scrutinise the efficiency, effectiveness or economy of the government's undertakings. The Auditor General has an essential contribution to make to the accountability process through the provision of inde- pendent and objective informa- tion, assurance and advice to parliament about the accounts presented by the executive. He is an officer of parliament and is independent of executive government and parliament in discharging the functions of the statutory office but answer- able to parliament for his stew- ardship of the public resources entrusted to him. However, I think that the full potential of the NAO to ad- dress corruption has not been fully exploited, in part because of the lack of understanding of the overall capacity of the Au- ditor General. It is well situated to contrib- ute. It is widely viewed as the independent watchdog of the public interest and has been putting a greater focus on ac- countability for ethics in the public service in the scoping of its audit work and also under- taking value-for-money audits. Corruption has long been a problem that our country has to confront. Solutions, how- ever, can only be homegrown. The auditor general is in a po- sition to take a stronger stand than he ever has to date. Civil society plays a key role as well. The NAO cannot intervene in the political affairs of our country. But it can give advice, encouragement and support to a government that wishes to fight corruption, and it is such a government that will, over time, attract a larger volume of investment. In 2020, for example, the NAO flagged a long list of shortcom- ings at several government entities, as well as arrears of €5.1 billion. An audit at the Malta Financial Services Au- thority revealed procurement issues; weak internal controls in various areas were noted at Mount Carmel Hospital; the audit of personal emoluments at MCAST disclosed various shortcomings; and an absence of enforcement action was not- ed at the Capital Transfer Duty Department and in respect of unpaid Class Two Social Secu- rity Contributions. That same year, the NAO cast doubts on the "regularity" of the tender for the disposal of the ITS site to the DB Group issued by Projects Malta five years before. It concluded that in terms of governance, the origin of the decision to dispose of the site remained unclear, which was of grave concern given the na- ture of the land that was to be disposed of. No information supporting this decision or who was involved was provid- ed, with the Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Tourism each assigning re- sponsibility to the other. Last year, then, the Annu- al Audit Report on the Public Accounts for 2023 carried over 260 relevant recommendations that were meant to address the shortcomings identified dur- ing the reviews in question and thus promote good governance and best practices in the gov- ernment's operations. Some of the key findings identified were the bypassing of procurement regulations, including services rendered under expired contracts and the absence of the necessary approvals; limited internal con- trols and standard operating procedures; lack of substantiat- ing documentation supporting the payment of allowances and overtime; and inadequate pro- ject management, leading to delays and overspending. Just some time ago, the NAO raised some very serious ques- tions about junior minister Re- becca Buttigieg's handling of the Europride event, revealing overspending and mismanage- ment at every turn. Such well-performed and re- ported audits serve as essential instruments for development, promoting good governance by improving public sector management. The NAO has over the years been providing high-quality audit services that clearly have the potential to assist the legislature and oth- er governing bodies in holding the government accountable for the good administration of public resources. Indeed, the NAO has moved towards more proactive in- The National Audit Office: a pillar of integrity Mark Said is a veteran lawyer Mark Said