Sindh govt initiates audit of LG deptts over COVID-19 expenditure

KARACHI: Sindh government has initiated an audit into the accounts of the local governments across the province for the expenditure incurred during coronavirus pandemic, ARY News reported on Friday.

The audit division of Sindh has written a letter to all the departments working under the local governments across Sindh to present their accounts. The copy of the said letter is available with ARY NEWS, which demands the departmental authorities to present their ledgers on September 14.

Secretary Local Government Department has convened a meeting of the audit committee on Sept 24 to proceed with the audit wherein it will seek the authorities of all the departments, working in the purview of local governments, to furnish their expenditure report.

The agenda of the meeting according to the letter is to carry out an audit of all the municipal corporations and town committees for the period of four months, from March to June 2020, as they worked towards the containment of COVID-19 spread and did relief work for the affected people.

The audit is to assess the expenditure spent by these departments amid the COVID-19 outbreak in the province. The letter warned the officers against evading the audit committee meeting with stern action.

Read More: Sindh govt begins audit of LB representatives after expiry of tenure

It also read that the offices that fail to furnish their expenditure reports for the said period will be dealt with strictly.

The audits will extend to district councils, municipal corporations, municipal committees and town committees all over the province. The municipal commissioners and chief officers among others with relevant portfolios will be sought to represent their departments and compile their expenditure spent in the time of COVID-19 outbreak in the province.