MONROVIA – On July 22, 2024, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) held a public hearing to discuss the Auditor General’s compliance audit of the Liberia Water & Sewer Corporation (LWSC) for the period from June 30, 2019, to June 30, 2021, and the audit of the financial statements of the Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea – Rural Electrification (CLSG-RE) project for June 30, 2021, to December 31, 2022.
The committee questioned former LWSC executives: Managing Director Duannah Kamara, Deputy Managing Director for Finance Sensee J. Morris, and Deputy Managing Director for Technical Services MacArthur Wisseh Hilton. The witnesses’ answers largely reiterated their previous responses to the audit’s observations. Current Managing Director Mo Ali also attended the hearing.
Key issues highlighted included financial management problems such as non-performance of bank reconciliation, uncollected bills, and significant unconfirmed receivable balances. There were also concerns about cash handling discrepancies and a lack of maintenance of receivable ledgers.
Procurement and asset management irregularities were noted, with missing bid documents and non-adherence to procurement methods. Tax compliance issues, including the failure to remit withholding taxes, were also identified, along with deficiencies in inventory records and asset management.
Personnel and recruitment issues were raised, including non-remittance of tax deductions, failure in direct deposit adherence, and non-compliance with recruitment policies, leading to unauthorized employee absences.
The PAC emphasized the need for LWSC to address these compliance issues urgently. Recommendations included improving financial management practices, enhancing procurement transparency, and ensuring strict adherence to recruitment and personnel policies to prevent future discrepancies.
The committee’s scrutiny aims to bolster accountability and improve operational efficiency in public utilities and infrastructure projects.
