The Auditor General of Pakistan has written to the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Finance for financial and administrative autonomy and it is likely to get the required powers by December 2016. AGP Rana Asad Amin told Business Recorder that the AGP held various meetings with the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister to get financial and administrative powers and added that the AGP would get these powers by the end of the current calendar year.
He said that being a subordinate department to the Finance Division compromises it on various issues. At present, the AGP can conduct audit of only 10 percent of the entire governmental record. The AGP is facing financial constraints and does not have the money to pay for transportation and other allowances of its audit staff, therefore it is conducting audit of only limited and select accounts.
After attaining financial autonomy, the audit department would be able to conduct the entire official record, he added. In the last meeting of its policy board, the Auditor General of Pakistan discussed legislation relating to financial, administrative autonomy, getting more resources and enhancing AGP standards of audit. It was decided in the meeting that it needed to adopt legislation for making AGP financially and administratively autonomous to broaden the audit net from 10 percent to entire official record.
The official maintained that the new projects identified under China Pakistan Economic Corridor will further increase the burden of work on the AGP and it would require more financial resources. The AGP is dealing with ministries, departments, defence production institutions and corporations but is facing serious financial constraints. In the West, audit offices have judicial powers and can even order the arrest of anyone, the official said.