NA leader: State Audit joins fights against corruption and waste

Hanoi (VNA) - National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan has applauded the State Audit Office of Vietnam (SAV) for its contributions in fighting corruption and waste.

At a working session with SAV leaders on October 3, Ngan said the role of State Audit was enhanced in 2013 when State audit agencies and the State Audit of Vietnam were mentioned in the country’s Constitution 2013 and when the National Assembly approved the Law on Audit in 2015.

The SAV has detected problems of legal documents and recommended amending, replacing or removing the erroneous documents, helping to improve the quality of legal documents, especially those related to State management of public assets, Ngan said.

The SAV also provided documents and materials to agencies and police so they could investigate suspected violations.

Last year, the State Audit conducted 276 audits and proposed financial corrections worth 38.77 trillion VND (1.7 billion USD), the highest figure in its 22 years of operation. It also recommended the adjustment, supplementation, replacement and withdrawal of 150 legal documents to prevent losses and waste.

The agency helped re-evaluate State capital in seven enterprises and revised up the amount by 20.8 trillion VND (917 million USD). Also, after examining 27 build-operate-transfer projects in the transportation sector, the State Audit proposed cutting the combined duration of toll collecting by 107 years.

In the first eight months of this year, the SAV’s 108 draft audit reports proposed financial corrections which add 11 trillion VND (484 million USD) to the State’s budget, reduce spending by 6.78 trillion VND (298 million USD) from the State’s budget and correct the spending of another 5.15 trillion VND (226.6 million USD).

[State Audit urged to focus on areas with high corruption risks]

The NA chairwoman asked the SAV to keep fulfilling its tasks, especially in providing data for socio-economic development plans.

“The SAV’s good performance will help the National Assembly make effective policies on finance, monetary, taxes and State budget spending,” she said.

She also requested the SAV speed up the drafting of documents guiding the implementation of the Law on State Audit 2015, applying information technology and administrative reform to reduce auditing time.

Ngan urged the audit agency to expand international relations, particularly through hosting the 14th Congress of the Asian Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions next year.

State Auditor General Ho Duc Phoc confirmed that the SAV would follow the resolutions and policies of Party, State and Government to fulfill its tasks.

Under the Law on State Audit, the SAV is a specialised agency for examining State finance established by the National Assembly, performing its duties independently and subject only to laws, and its functions extend to auditing financial statements, auditing compliance with laws, and auditing the performance of every institution that manages and uses State assets.-VNA