By Buba Gagigo
An audit report has revealed that returning officers of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) failed to return D1,856,314 that remained in their bank accounts after the conclusion of various elections.
According to the auditors, discussions with IEC management confirmed that as part of election procedures, funds are transferred to the private bank accounts of returning officers to cover election-related expenses within their regions. The officers are expected to withdraw the necessary funds and return any unused amounts to the IEC at the end of the elections.
“The audit team reviewed the bank statements of each returning officer during the four (4) elections held within the period ranging from 2021 to 2023 and noted that some returning officers did not withdraw the total amount of funds transferred to their accounts by the IEC to take care of elections expenses. There were funds amounting to D1,856,314 remaining in their respective bank accounts which they failed to withdraw and return back to the IEC after the end of the respective elections, raising suspicions that these remaining funds were retained in their private bank accounts for personal use,” the auditors reported.
They further indicated that this situation allowed for the potential misuse of public funds, which should have been returned to the Commission.
“This also results in huge losses of public funds that could have been utilised into other official perspectives,” they said.
The auditors recommended that the IEC management provide a ‘plausible’ explanation, along with supporting documentation, for the discrepancies.
“Management should ensure that they recover those funds from the returning officers and provide evidence to the audit team for confirmation. Management should ensure that designated account(s) in the name of the Commission are opened for such activities so that accountability for utilization of such funds can easily be established, especially inflows, outflows, and balances at a specified period of time. This will also ensure that bank reconciliations are regularly conducted to identify and correct errors in a timely manner,” the auditors advised.
Responding to the auditor, the IEC management stated, “These are remaining bank balances of Returning Officers before their retirements to IEC. The management went on to say that “There is no Returning Officer who had not adequately and appropriately retired all his/her election funds to Commission.” They also assured the auditors, as part of their remedial plans, that “The Commission has already started looking into means of paying election funds in the next electoral cycle without paying such funds into any Returning Officer’s bank account.”
Despite the electoral commission’s management’s denial and assurance, the auditors expressed dissatisfaction with the responses provided. They emphasized that it would have been more responsible for the management to investigate the issue rather than accept actions allegedly carried out by some Returning Officers.
“We are deeply dissatisfied and disappointed with your management responses. As this issue indicates a possible fraudulent act, what would have been more responsible as management is to launch an investigation into this matter rather than conforming to the acts purported by some of the returning officers.” The auditors stated.
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