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Public Accounts Committee Report Reveals Alarming Public Fund Mismanagement

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Public Accounts Committee Report Reveals Alarming Public Fund Mismanagement

The latest report from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by Reza Uteem, a Member of Parliament and leader of the MMM party, was released on Thursday, October 3. This marked the fourth report published since the general elections of 2019. The findings underscore severe shortcomings across various government ministries, resulting in substantial financial losses amounting to hundreds of millions of rupees for taxpayers.

Ministry of Social Security: Pension Overpayments

Among the most critical issues identified is the ongoing overpayment of pensions by the Ministry of Social Security. Each year, the Director of Audit highlighted the ministry’s failure to appropriately detect pension overpayments to ineligible beneficiaries, as well as the sluggish pace of recovering these excess funds.

As of June 30, 2019, overpayments totaled Rs 114 million, increasing to Rs 118.7 million by June 30, 2020.

The figure slightly decreased to Rs 104.7 million by June 30, 2021, though Rs 17.1 million was written off as uncollectible debt. By June 30, 2022, overpayments again rose to Rs 106.3 million.

The recovery efforts have been inadequate, with only Rs 15.7 million recovered in the fiscal year 2019-2020 and a mere Rs 14.2 million in 2021-2022.

The PAC was informed that legal action to recover pensions must be initiated within three years; otherwise, the debt becomes unenforceable.

Consequently, millions of rupees in public funds are written off each year.

Certain longstanding cases involving Rs 45.6 million remain unresolved and may now be subject to legal expiration.

The PAC expressed its outrage, stating it is “unacceptable” for millions of rupees in public funds to be awarded to ineligible individuals or deceased persons.

The committee finds it even more unacceptable that swift action is not taken to recover discovered overpayments, leading to continued waste of taxpayer money.

Bizarre Pension Payments

The PAC was particularly shocked to uncover a case where the same name and national identity number were registered as the deceased husband of 559 widows receiving basic widow pensions.

The committee sought explanations but found none satisfactory.

The report highlighted, “The committee is at a loss to understand how 559 beneficiaries could receive widow pensions for the same deceased individual and how this situation remained undetected for years.”

Social Aid Overpayments: Ineffective Recovery Measures

The PAC also raised concerns regarding the inadequacy of recovery controls within the Ministry of Social Security concerning social aid payments.

For several years, the ministry has disbursed funds to ineligible individuals without successfully reclaiming these overpayments.

As of June 30, 2020, the overpayment stood at Rs 5 million, rising to Rs 6.9 million by June 30, 2021, and reaching Rs 8.3 million by June 30, 2022.

The majority of these overpayments remain uncollected; by June 30, 2022, only Rs 19,700 had been reclaimed.

Furthermore, local offices have failed to regularly submit monthly statements regarding overpayments, and cross-checking with death registry lists has not been effectively implemented.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Unauthorized Relocation

The PAC’s findings also address issues within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In November 2021, the High Commissioner in Kuala Lumpur relocated the mission’s premises—where it had been situated since 2002—without ministerial approval.

Only the mission’s accountant, with ministry consent, is permitted to make administrative decisions.

The mission had previously sought authorization for the move in March 2021, but in August, the ministry instructed the mission to suspend all relocation plans.

Despite these clear directives, the High Commissioner proceeded to sign a lease agreement for new premises, binding the state to these terms without proper authorization and using mission funds for the security deposit and rent.

Alarmingly, rather than reprimanding the High Commissioner, the ministry later endorsed the relocation, effectively condoning this breach of protocol.

The PAC expressed deep concern over a politically appointed individual circumventing established procedures without facing repercussions.

Public funds were utilized without proper authorization, highlighting a significant lapse in accountability.

Political Developments: Alliance of Change and Rezistans ek Alternativ

In political news, Ashok Subron, leader of the left-wing party Rezistans ek Alternativ, announced progress in negotiations with the Alliance of Change.

The electoral program of Rezistans ek Alternativ is nearing finalization as a political agreement, with “just one final point” remaining to be settled.

During a meeting on October 3 with Alliance leaders, Subron indicated that a follow-up meeting was likely to occur soon.

Of the twelve proposed points from Rezistans ek Alternativ, eleven have been accepted, leaving the candidacy of Kugan Parapen as the last unresolved issue.

Subron emphasized that the Alliance of Change recognized Rezistans ek Alternativ’s right to contribute to discussions on workers’ rights and environmental issues, asserting that the focus of these negotiations is on policy rather than positions or appointments.

An alignment involving two candidates from Rezistans ek Alternativ has been agreed upon, with the third candidate still pending finalization.

Source: Defi Media

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