MPs have summoned Auditor General Nancy Gathungu to explain what they term worrying decline in the quality of audit reports.
The lawmakers sitting at National Assembly’s Public Investment Committee on Governance and Education Committee on Wednesday claimed that officers from the audit office collude with parastatal chiefs to sanitise questionable accounts.
Committee chairman and Bumula MP Wanami Wamboka accused the audit office of watering down findings, failing to flag glaring irregularities and clearing chief executives with questionable track records.
They cited instances where reports submitted to the committee painted a clean bill of health for state agencies, only for MPs to uncover glaring financial breaches through their own inquiries.
Wamboka said his committee will not be used to rubberstamp compromised audit documents, insisting auditors have no powers to clear any state agency.
“The quality of reports are wanting. Parliament will not be used to rubberstamp illegalities in government,” he said.
“Auditors meet with agencies; they clear them and bring to us to rubberstamp.”
Bomachoge Chache MP Alfah Miruka said the committee will not be used as conveyor belt adding that they will demand accountability from the CEOs and from the auditors who signed off the reports.
“We cannot be used to rubberstamp something that we do not understand,” Miruka said.
Wamboka said the committee will meet Gathungu next week to discuss the compromised’ reports.
“We want to meet the Auditor General herself next week, this is unacceptable,” he said.
MPs are expected to grill the Auditor General on alleged behind-the-scenes negotiations between auditors and top executives, which they say undermine the integrity of the public audit process.
Wamboka said the committee will hold responsible director in charge of audits who signed off the ‘suspicious’ reports.
“We want the director who was directly involved in the audit,” he said.
The development emerged during a session to consider the 2023-24 audit report for Kenya Space Agency.
Wamboka had also raised similar sentiments regarding the audit findings for the Kenya National Qualifications Authority, KNQA .
Wamboka had to reschedule the session with Kenya Space Agency acting director general Hillary Kipkosgey.
“I am afraid Mr Auditor we will not proceed,” he said, noting that the committee will sanction new audit of the Kenya Space Agency’s accounts.
“Chair, I am a bit confused but guided,” the agency’s boss said in response.
According to a report that was tabled before the Wamboka led committee, the auditors flagged three issues at the Kenya Space Agency and only two in the Kenya National Qualifications Authority accounts.
“In some instances, they left out some big issues and only highlighted the flimsy ones,” Wamboka said.
In the Agency’s audit, Gathungu flagged staffing capacity where 14 had served in acting capacity for more than a year with the remaining 45 on short term contracts.
Regarding KNQA, the report shows that for four financial years, the entity has only two question relating to staffing where the entity has been flagged for having only 39 staff-in-post against an approved establishment of one 126 resulting to understaffing of 87 staff.
The other query regards failure by the entity to surrender excess Appropriations in aid.
