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Momodou
Denmark
11634 Posts |
 Posted - 28 Oct 2020 : 17:10:33
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Gov’t declines to reveal breakdown of Covid-19 expenditure
Between March and August, authorities have spent D1.133 billion on Covid 19 activities. Aside from D845 million Finance Ministry spent on food aid to Gambians, the health ministry spent D413 million on allowances, hotels, vehicles, food, fuel, among others, as of October 19.
Malagen: OCTOBER 28, 2020
By Mustapha K Darboe
https://malagen.com/news/govt-declines-to-reveal-breakdown-of-covid-19-expenditure/
Gambia has registered 3,666 cases of Covid-19 since March with records of 119 deaths.
Government institutions responsible for the spending of over a billion dalasi approved for the fight against Covid-19 have declined requests to reveal a breakdown of their expenditure. Since early August, Malagen has written a letter to the Ministry of Finance and later to Accountant General’s Departments and Ministry of Health but all the institutions have declined to release the data.
According to an expenditure report released by the Finance Ministry in August, the government has spent D1.133 billion on Covid-19 activities since March.
The Finance Ministry directed the Paper to write to the Accountant General’s Department (AGD). However, the Accountant General Momodou Lamin Bah would tell Malagen, after receiving the letter, through a phone call that they could only get the data at the spending agencies like the Health Ministry even though all payments are made from his Department.
Meanwhile, on August 27, Muhamadou Lamin Jaiteh, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health, who had promised to give the Paper the information they had requested, changed his position. Jaiteh texted Malagen reporter on August 26 stating that they have spent over D225 million as of August 1, without any further detail. But the reporter called him back to inform him that what was sought was a breakdown of expenditure.
But when the reporter visited Jaiteh at his office on August 27, he claimed that even though they have “nothing to hide”, they don’t have the authority to release the data being sought.
“I just discussed it with the minister. He has not given me the authority to give the information. And I have to consult the Ministry of Finance on those figures because they gave us the money and if we spent the money, we report to them…,” said Jaiteh, even though the reporter first placed a request to Finance and Accountant General’s before the Health Ministry. Jaiteh interestingly expressed concern that there would be a problem if his expenditure report does not tally with the information at Finance.
Read the rest here: https://malagen.com/news/govt-declines-to-reveal-breakdown-of-covid-19-expenditure/
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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Gov’t declines to reveal breakdown of Covid-19 exp
