Urgent audit requested to the Auditor General

Prime Minister James Marape has officially requested the Auditor-General’s Office to conduct an urgent audit of the spending by the departments of Finance, National Planning, and Works and Highways. This request follows recent significant disbursements of funds by these three crucial departments.

“I have written to the Auditor-General to preside over an urgent audit into spending by the Finance, National Planning, and Works and Highways departments,” Prime Minister Marape announced. “These three key state departments have been responsible for huge disbursements of public funds recently.

“This is not to suggest any wrongdoing but to demonstrate to the people that we are committed to ensuring that funds are spent properly and work is being done. For instance, Ialibu-Pangia MP Peter O’Neill has criticized public works, claiming that one contractor has been paid K3 billion. This is a public statement, and we have already instructed the Auditor-General to carry out a public audit into the Department of Works and Highways.

“Similarly, we have called for thorough audits in the departments of Finance and National Planning to verify how they have been spending their allocated funds. Our citizens must be assured that, as a government, we are not here to misappropriate funds or misuse budgets.

“This audit will provide peace of mind to the people of Papua New Guinea, as well as to myself as Prime Minister, regarding how funds in these three key departments have been spent.”