No acquittals, no subsidies

OP/ED

WE have it on good authority that the third quarter school subsidies worth K3,134,125 for Central are now ready to be distributed to the five districts this week.

We have it on good authority, too, that no school will get its share of subsidies if it has not submitted acquittals for its subsidy allocations for last year and for the first quarter of this year.

A team from the provincial education division has issued stern instructions that no subsidy cheque ought to be paid unless and until acquittals are in.

 “No acquittals, no subsidy,” provincial education adviser Titus Hatagen is quoted as saying in The National today.

Hatagen appealed yesterday to school head teachers and boards of management to ensure subsidy acquittals are in.

He has asked church agencies to help in this.

The instructions will, of course, not go down well with many school headmasters and their governing boards.

They are going to argue that the money is allocated by the government for their schools and, that, it ought to go to them. The schools would be right.

They will argue, too, that there is a myriad number of pressing financial needs at the school and the government money ought to go to them as a matter of urgency. And, of course, they would be right.

There is just one little catch. There is the law and it is called the Public Finances Management Act.

This law protects all monies disbursed from the government coffers.

The law and its enabling regulations specifically provide for acquittals for all and every toea of public money that is spent in the country.

School subsidies being public money, every school has a legal obligation to acquit for the monies it has received and spent.

It ought not to be a difficult thing to do.

Indeed, the guidelines for spending of school subsidies are very relaxed.

Each school will receive a graduated amount of money in subsidy for every student attending, depending on the grades they are in.

As to how the subsidy is spent is entirely up to the school board and management.

Each school, therefore, can spend the public money as it chooses to depending on its own needs.

It is hoped that the money is spent for the good and development of the school.

All the government requires is an acquittal of how the quarter’s subsidy allocation has been spent.

An acquittal form is the only way education authorities will be able to tell whether public money has been spent on worthy causes at the school.

If such a simple condition cannot be met, well, no school ought to deserve any more subsidy money from the government.

Schools are not the only culprits in failing to meet the acquittal condition.

Failure to produce acquittals for public money is a national phenomenon.

Failure to acquit funds by ministers of state and members or parliament down is a widespread malaise.

Every year, parliament authorises and passes national budgets in the billions of kina. Out of the budget, moneys are distributed to every government department, statutory corporation, provincial governments and agencies to spend money to provide goods and services for the people of PNG.

The Public Finances Management Act lays down all the rules and procedures for managing, spending and accounting for the expenditure of the money by those who are charged with distributing the money.

To ensure the money is spent for the purposes for which it is allocated, there is the requirement for accounting of the money. Each year, the auditor-general is charged with inspecting and auditing the books of every entity that spends public money so that all is done properly and according to the rules.

Money for school subsidies is parked in the Department of Education and distributed to schools in the country.

The chief accounting officer for spending of this money is not the minister for education, but the secretary for education.

He must ensure money is spent properly and correctly, or he will be held accountable. Schools have a duty to ensure the secretary makes a good report in order that they continue to receive subsidy funds.

Every other government body is required by law to do the same.

It is this simple lack of providing acquittals that leads to charges of lack of transparency and accountability in government.