Questions relating to why the Ministry of Agriculture was taking money which was initially allocated for capital projects and using it for operational expenses have been raised in the Public Accounts Committee meeting.
The Auditor General’s Office had questioned why these funds were being used to repair photocopy machines, buying laptops, upgrading of the Ministry’s website, advertisements and travel allowance.
The Auditor General’s Office said it cannot understand how the purchasing of jerseys and shorts would be related to capital projects.
According to the Auditor General’s Office, in the 2009 report, $5,000 was used for the purchasing of these jerseys and shorts.
While responding to this, Acting Permanent Secretary for Agriculture Uraia Waibuta said in implementing projects they need a certain level of operating funds but when they receive funds for the normal operations it does not even meet the cost of implementing those projects.
He said the Ministry of Finance allows them to take seven percent of the total project cost as operating costs.
Waibuta said they specifically use the funds for the projects.
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