CENTAL Executive Director, Anderson D. Miamen
By Pewu Y. Sumo
Monrovia — The Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL) is calling on the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) to investigate the findings of a recent audit of the Government of Liberia’s Consolidated Funds Account. The audit, conducted by the General Auditing Commission (GAC), revealed significant weaknesses in the government’s revenue collection and financial management systems for the period of January 1 to December 31, 2024.
In a major press conference today in Monrovia, CENTAL Executive Director Anderson D. Miamen said the GAC audit uncovered several critical issues, ranging from Financial Discrepancies, where the GAC audit found that the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP) disbursed over US$2.8 million in excess of the amount approved in the national budget.
Miamen said such revelation is particularly troubling given previous accusations of off-budget spending by the current administration.
The CENTAL Executive Director also highlighted under-disbursement of funds, which, according to him, a total of 106 ministries and agencies were affected by an under-disbursement of US$78,289,600 from approved appropriations in the national budget, impacting critical sectors like health and education.
Miamen pointed to revenue loss from SOEs as revealed in an assessment of 11 State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), which showed that they paid US$5,669,672.88 in income tax, which was substantially less than the required amount of US$10,160,233.98, leading to a significant loss of revenue.
Another major issue pointed to by CENTAL is that the GAC audit also highlighted operational failures within the Liberia Revenue Authority (LRA), noting that it had not expanded its revenue reporting software (ASYCUDA and LITAS) to rural areas. This failure, compounded by a lack of adequate personnel in rural tax collection centers, contributes to inefficient revenue generation and increased risk of corruption which CENTAL sees as systemic failures on the part of the LRA.
According to section 4 of the amended Public Financial Management Act of 2019, the consolidated fund account is where all government revenues from taxes, fees, fines, and other sources are deposited and disbursed, based on budgetary appropriations.
CENTAL expressed deep concern over the audit findings, noting that similar issues were identified in previous years, indicating a persistent lack of improvement. The anti-graft institution is urging the LACC to launch a full investigation to hold those responsible accountable and ensure urgent reforms are implemented to strengthen financial integrity and public trust.
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