According to the auditor general’s report on the government’s 2024 accounts and financial statements, the Meet the Peoples Tour cost D64,666, 881.00 in total, even though the National Assembly had only budgeted D30 million for that year.
After a contentious debate in 2023, with 26 members voting in favor of the hike and 15 others, mostly opposition NAMs, voting against it, lawmakers approved the tour’s budget rise from D10 million to D30 million.
But according to the National Audit Office’s 2024 audit report, which was released last Friday, the government really spent D64, 666,881 on the tour. This indicates that the trip spent D34, 666,881 more than its allocated budget.
Lamin J. Sanneh, a politician for the opposition UDP in Brikama South, responded to this occurrence by saying: “If parliament approves a budget, it is a law, and if that budget is overspent it means they have crossed the boundary. In a normal setting, the finance minister needs to be called and asked how they end up spending over D60 million when we only approved D30 million. He needs to give us an execution rate. How much was given to them to embark on the tour and how much they ended up spending and where do they get the additional money from,” Sanneh stated.
He bemoaned the lack of effectiveness of the National Assembly in overseeing and reviewing the budget to make sure the administration is spending within its allocated funds.
Sanneh noted that in order to prevent government entities from overspending, the Assembly must take steps to guarantee that authorized budget lines are routinely examined and monitored.
