Why should audit report outshine the budget?

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VOXPOP 'For an audit report to be able to 'steal the limelight' from a nation's budget must mean there are major issues to be reported. As usual.'

Nazri: Audit report to be tabled after budget

vox populi small thumbnail Joker: Audit reports are supposed to be boring if the audited entity does its job without any funny businesses. For an audit report to be able to 'steal the limelight' from a nation's budget must mean there are major issues to be reported. As usual.

And as usual, it will be ignored by the government and its mass-amnesia mainstream media which are expected to go on and on about the virtues of the budget.

Malaysiawatch4.blogspot: How apt the words used: "So that it won't steal the limelight from (debate on) the budget," explained de facto law minister Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz. Indeed, the auditor-general's report highlights how and where the stealing occurs.

Kit P: Delaying the audit report to until after the budget violates the spirit of both the audit and the budget.

The budget process is not meant to be a rubber stamp. Strictly speaking, the executive must obtain approval from the people (Parliament) where and how much to spend money next year. That is the budget.

Part of the prerequisite for that is the executive must table an independent assessment of how responsibly last year's funds were spent. Was the expenditure wise? Were there adequate controls? That is the auditor-general's report.

Tabling the audit report after the budget is not the correct due process.

Mr KJ John: The auditor-general should resign if the minister cannot give and accord respect to the audit report. It is long overdue - the report must be fully tabled and debated in Parliament before the new budget.

That would be good governance, and the minister of finance must respond to audit comments on what steps will be taken to improve failures and observations for 2013.

NewMalaysia: An audit report should be tabled before the budget, this is to identify the weaknesses in the public sector and rectification or improvement to be incorporated into the new budget, so that spending in the new term will be more prudent and able to avoid any unnecessary wastage. Such a simple job but they can't do it right; that's typical of BN.

Anonymous #19098644 : A prime minister that blatantly flouts the tender process and deliberately bypasses the recommendations of the technical committee in the awarding of the MRT project to George Kent, a non-qualified company, makes a mockery of accountability and transparency.

So what do the rest of the ministers, BN cronies and corrupt civil servants do? They follow the leader.

Don't expect much good to come out of the audit report. Year after year, the Auditor-General's Office has done a good job highlighting the discrepancies, outright corruption and abuse, and year after year the BN continues with its predatory ways.

ABU_sed: Already Umno is admitting that the audit has uncovered some questionable findings on the government, otherwise what difference does it make whether it is tabled before or after the budget announcement?

Anwar: No strings attached to use of private jet

Ferdtan: During Dr Mahathir Mohamad's time as PM when he didn't have a government personal jet, like now, I remember he once borrowed a personal jet from Country Heights Bhd's boss, Lee Kim Yew, to fly to Australia, and then to New Zealand.

If it was no big deal for a PM then to fly in a private jet, when he had such great power within his disposal to repay the personal favour, it should not caused much controversy if an opposition leader were to do the same.

Anwar Ibrahim has no such power to reward his friend for lending him the jet to use; in fact, it is to the detriment of his friend. The BN leaders won't like it and the usual vindictive politics would caused him to suffer some business consequences.

This shows the optimistic outlook of Pakatan is getting better when a businessman gets less afraid of the ruling government. We hear often of many wealthy businessmen donating to the cause of oppositions anonymously.

2zzzxxx: I don't trust these "corporate figures" in Bolehland and I hope Anwar will be extra careful. I smell a trap. No one does something for free in this day and age, especially so-called "corporate figures" and only Umno's "corporate figures" got billions to burn.

Michael Ng 34f2: They are getting worried as there are also big and powerful backers for Pakatan Rakyat in their march to Putrajaya. That's why they try to play up this issue. They have more access to goverment planes and helicopters, and their big time cronies also have private jets for them too.

Isana: Just like the Jelajah Merdeka bus, this jet is a private arrangement. The only issue with Umno is that the tide is shifting even in the corporate circles, business owners are hedging their bets.

Gerard Lourdesamy: Why the big fuss? The plane is not maintained by the federal government and it did not involve public funds. The Pakatan state governments did not pay for the use of the aircraft and everything was done in a transparent way.

The fact that it is the subject of public debate shows that the Pakatan has got nothing to hide and the use of the aircraft was not tied to any future favours or kickbacks. Has Najib and Rosmah explained why the government jet was used for shopping trips to Dubai, Milan and Paris?

Boiling Mud: Instead of quibbling Anwar being loaned a private plane to travel in East Malaysia, those rabble rousers ought to have queried BN - after all those years of promises to bring development to East Malaysia - why are the road conditions as bad as they were, and why are most places remain difficult to access or inaccessible by roads?

Just look at those average people travelling in flimsy boats braving the dangerous torrent rivers to get to places they want to go. How about someone answering this question before pointing a finger at others?

Bystander: Frankly, if I have a private jet, I too will loan it to Pakatan. It is the least I could do. I am planning to use my seven-seater MPV to ferry would-be voters to cast their votes come GE13, all at my own expenses.

 


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