Dear Editor,
Having read Mr Jermain Johnson’s letter, captioned “What has the city’s internal audit section been doing?” there are other questions which need to be asked and be answered, hence this letter.
Our readers need to know whether this Municipality has an Internal Audit Char-ter. This Charter is a formal document which defines the internal audit activity’s purpose, authority and responsibility. It establishes the internal audit activity’s position within the Georgetown Municipality, authorises access by the auditors to the records, personnel, and physical properties, relevant to the performance of engagements, and finally, it defines the scope of internal audit activities.
If there is no Charter, then the Internal Audit Section (IAS) is limited in their scope of activities. However, if there is a Charter, then the IAS is not meeting the professional practice of internal auditing as promulgated in the International Auditing Standards of the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA)-Global.
Another burning issue is whether the IAS has its independence. This is achieved when the Head of IAS reports functionally to the Council and a Sub-Committee of the Council, in fulfilling its responsibilities. It is imperative that the internal audit activity must be free from interference in determining the scope of internal auditing, in performing its work, and in communicating the results of its audit engagements.
Mr Editor, I am writing this letter based on the information in the news media, hence I may be subjected to correction. I however wish to emphasise that if there is no Charter, and no independence of the IAS, then hardly any internal auditing is being done at this Municipality. And this pronouncement is in keeping with the IIA’s Standards which provide a framework for performing internal auditing.
Having said that, the staff of this IAS has never attended any of the Guyana Chapter of the IIA’s continuing professional development seminars and workshops. Evidence of this is its most recent seminar on 26 and 27 September 2018. This speaks volumes, since many other entities in the private and public (including Central Government) sectors have been attending such seminars which goal, among others, is on developing and updating their staff on the practice of this profession.
I will venture to state that the IAS of the Municipality appears to need a complete overhauling, and positive efforts should be in train to urgently address the pertinent issues. I close by stating that the existence of an IAS is to attest, among others, to the transparency and accountability functions of the Municipality in order to add value to its operations. The relevant authorities need to urgently address the internal auditing activity of this Municipality. Less talk and more urgent and positive action is the way forward.
Yours faithfully,
John Seeram
