Over Shs300m paid to ghost employees in Ntoroko – AG
The report considered the payment of Shs304.3m to the 21 individuals as a financial loss to the government, recommending the district accounting officer to recover the money. PHOTO/ FILE
What you need to know:
- The audit report considered the payment of Shs304.3m to 21 individuals who did not show up for the validation exercise as a financial loss to the government.
- The Auditor General, as a result, recommends that the district accounting officer should recover the money.
The report of the Auditor General, Mr John Muwanga, for the financial year ending June 2023, shows Shs304.3m was paid to staff who do not exist in Ntoroko District.
The report said the employees did not participate in the concluded validation exercise, yet they were still listed on the payroll system.
The findings
The report disclosed that 750 of the 809 district employees were successfully verified.
However, 38 employees, representing 5 percent of the total workforce, were not verified despite their appearance for validation; this was because they did not satisfy the requirements of the validation exercise.
Furthermore, 21 staff members did not attend the validation exercise. Despite their non-participation, these individuals were included in the payroll system, leading to a disbursement of Shs304.3m in salaries.
Out of 21 staff who did not show up for validation, three of them were out of the country for study leave while the remaining 18 staff could not be accounted for by the accounting officer.
The report considered the payment of Shs304.3m to the 21 individuals as a financial loss to the government, recommending the district accounting officer to recover the money.
Additionally, the report highlighted seven individuals, who had participated in the validation exercise but had not accessed the payroll by the end of June 2023.
The inclusion of these individuals in the payroll occurred after confirmation by the accounting officer, according to the report.
Among the 38 affected individuals, 29 were Grade III teachers recruited in 2018.
In March 2021, irregular appointments were made, citing a non-existent minute number.
The remaining nine individuals lacked proper documentation from the appointing district service commission.
Among them, three had transferred services from Bundibugyo District, and the minutes for their appointment could not be traced.
Two other staff members were recruited outside the established structure, and one individual belonged to the Ntungamo District Local Government. For the remaining three individuals recruited by the district, their minutes could not be traced.
The report also revealed inconsistencies in the employee details of 184 individuals who were on the payroll, inconsistencies included irregularities in the date of birth and data captured by the National Identification and Registration Authority (Nira) on the National IDs
The special audit covering three financial years from 2019/2020 to 2022/2023 revealed that 86 employees were not paid salaries, amounting to Shs225.8m.
