The absence of the Auditor General is really affecting many sectors of this country’s economy and it is being felt.
The impact is not only being felt in Parliament, but it is also being felt beyond Parliament. Just the other day we were hearing that shareholders of KenGen will not be able to get their returns and the reason is that they do not have audited accounts.
Now that we do not have a substantive Auditor General, it is really going to hit us hard.
Not only Parliament but the Capital Markets Authority, Kenya Power, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and Central Bank of Kenya are also suffering.
Shareholders are going to have problems, they are not going to get dividends and when you don’t get dividends, and you invest, then you are being denied your rights.
The issue of the Auditor General should be expedited to save the country from plunging into a bigger problem.
The country itself without being audited is a big problem; you cannot run a company without audit.
We did call – as Public Investments Committee – the chairman of the selection panel and his team to tell us the progress of the selection process, but they failed to show up and we had a timeline from the Speaker when we had to submit our report so we had to do our report without their input.
So we don’t know the progress, right now it is all hearsay, everyone is saying everything about the progress but it is all that, hearsay.
We tabled a special report on the risks of such a delay and advised the executive to ensure there is an appointed Auditor General before the expiry of the incumbents’ term.
It is only this way that we can assure the country of a smooth transition and even get ample time to vet the candidate for a proper handover.
As Parliament, the onus will also be on us to come up with a bill – on resumption of House sittings - to cure the lacuna that authorities have attempted to exploit in delaying the appointment.
The Mvita MP spoke to the Star
