THE military broke its budget allocation every year for five years, rounding up a total of $118.1million in overspending.
This has been confirmed by the Auditor-General, Eroni Vatuloka, whose audit of government accounts now rest with the interim Prime Minister's Office.
According to the Auditor-General's figures, over the years from 2003 to 2007, the military spent $470.3million in taxpayer funds.
|
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
| Revised Budget |
57.7 |
70.2 |
67.1 |
76.5 |
80.7 |
| Expenditure |
76.9 |
86.6 |
80.4 |
100.2 |
126.2 |
| Overspending |
(19.2) |
(16.4) |
(13.3) |
(23.7) |
(45.5) |
|---|
Auditor General's figures - military spending ($m)
Mr Vatuloka was responding to queries from The Fiji Times over whether his office was investigating claims that the military had broken its budget allocations.
He confirmed that the Auditor-General's Office had completed its audit to the 2007 accounts.
"The reports are with the interim Prime Minister and Acting Minister for Finance," he said in a written statement.
The reports were submitted to the Ministry of Finance on November 3 this year - two and a half weeks before the 2009 Budget announcement.
Mr Vatuloka added that the military over-expenditure over those years was approved by Cabinet.
"There were similar over-expenditures in the previous years (2003-2006), which were also approved by Cabinet," he said.
Yesterday, acting interim Finance Minister Aiyaz Saiyed-Khaiyum said he was yet to see the Auditor-General's reports. He said he would comment after he saw the documents.
Ousted prime minister Laisenia Qarase was unable to comment last night over what measures were taken deal with surcharging of the heads of departments that broke their annual budget allocations.
"Yes, there are provisions in the Finance Management Act but I don't them now," he said.
One year before the 2006 coup, High Court judge Justice Jiten Singh had ordered the Ministry of Finance to reimburse Commodore Bainimarama (as Commander of the Fiji Military Forces) over a surcharge that had been placed on him for busting the military budget in 2004.
Justice Singh had ruled that the Ministry of Finance used an incorrect section of the Finance Act to surcharge Commodore Bainimarama.
He also said in his ruling that: "The proper section to use would have been Regulation 59 of the Financial Regulations."
Generally, the Auditor-General's report is tabled in Parliament and scrutinised by the Public Accounts Committee.
But in the absence of parliamentary democracy, in February this year, the President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo, appointed members of an interim Public Accounts Committee.
This was to be chaired by Manu Korovulavula, with members Adi Laufitu Malani, Mataiasi Kotobalavu, Kamlesh Arya, Taufa Vakatale and Jainend Kumar.
Yesterday, Ms Vakatale confirmed that the Ministry of Finance was yet to pass on to them the 2006 and 2007 reports of the Auditor-General's Office.
The interim PAC - which will be in place until the next House of Representatives is appointed - is charged with independently scrutinising the Auditor-General's reports and then reporting to the President on their findings.
According to a Department of Information statement, the President was to then forward the report to the interim Prime Minister for tabling in the interim Cabinet.
Yesterday, Mr Qarase said it was important that both the Auditor-General and FICAC be allowed to carry out a special investigation into the military's massive over-expenditure.
"This task must be undertaken immediately ... those responsible must account for their actions before the law," he said in a Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua party statement.
He also discredited an explanation by former interim finance minister Mahendra Chaudhry over why the military busted its budget in 2007.
"The explanation for the over-expenditure from the former minister of finance, Mr Mahendra Chaudhry, that the extra money was needed because of the threat of invasion by Australia and for internal security reasons is simply not acceptable," the statement said.
"The fact is that there was no threat of invasion by Australia; there was no invitation issued by Mr Qarase and his Government for foreign military intervention; and there was no need to call up the territorial forces and mount a massive internal security operation in the absence of a popular uprising against the perpetrators of the 2006 military coup".
The SDL said the $45million that the military overspent in 2007 could have been spent on more productive capital works.
"This sum could have funded the following, for example: Nine modern district hospitals; or four large secondary schools; or four large reservoirs for water reticulation; or 45 kilometres of tarsealed roads, and so on. Instead, the money has been used mainly on consumption expenditure with minimal contribution to the country's economic growth," the statement said.
Commodore Bainimarama left the country yesterday to attend the DOHA International Conference on Financing On Development in Qatar.
He was accompanied by Finance Ministry permanent secretary, Peceli Vocea.
