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Efforts to promote, implement audit recommendations but still many audit recommendations are “pending”
According to statistics and review by the State Audit Office, in recent times, most of the conclusions and recommendations of the audit have been diligently and seriously implemented (about 75-80% on average for consecutive audit years) and continue to be implemented in subsequent years for the remaining recommendations each year with a rate of about 15-20%. However, there are still many conclusions and audit recommendations that have not been fully and promptly implemented, in which the conclusions and recommendations of the State Audit Office for the budget years of 2021, 2020, and 2019 and earlier have not been implemented, and are being monitored and urged by the State Audit Office.
This means that if they are not given attention and handled resolutely, recommendations for financial processing such as revenue increase, expenditure decrease, recovery of budget collection will not be fully and promptly implemented, and there is a risk of loss and waste.
Vice Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee Vũ Thị Lưu Mai said that the existence of a large number of outstanding audit recommendations on financial processing is a waste of resources in budget revenue, while the economy still faces many difficulties and has a great demand for investment and development.
Meanwhile, according to delegate Phạm Thị Thanh Mai, Deputy Head of the delegation in charge of the Hanoi People’s Council, the recommendations on mechanisms and policies from the audit year 2019 and earlier have not been implemented, which is one of the “bottlenecks” that need to be focused on. In particular, for mechanisms and policies that do not comply with the state regulations and practices, it is necessary to clarify and have appropriate solutions; because “if a mistake is made and not rectified immediately, it will continue to be a mistake in the following years”.
Candidly acknowledging the matter of pending audit recommendations, besides objective reasons, localities all affirm that they will concentrate their efforts to thoroughly resolve the “pending” recommendations.
From the perspective of state management agencies as well as audited units, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Duy Lâm said that the Ministry is and will continue to vigorously organize the implementation of a number of tasks to soon complete the contents according to the conclusions and recommendations of the State Audit Office. With regard to recommendations on mechanisms and policies, the Ministry assigned tasks to agencies and units to review, develop, and submit competent authorities for promulgating policies that are still missing, overlapping, and not suitable to reality.
The Ministry is also actively processing legal procedures such as: Urgently and timely approving project adjustments, adjusting financial plans, directing and urgently urging the implementation of settlement of projects to create the basis for implementing audit conclusions. “For contractors who do not cooperate in implementing audit recommendations, the Ministry of Transport will consider excluding them from participating in projects managed by the Ministry until all recommendations are fully implemented,” said Mr. Lâm.
Emphasizing that the implementation of audit recommendations is an important task, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Hà Minh Hải said that the City People’s Committee has issued many directives and assigned specific tasks to units to implement audit recommendations. In particular, the City Party Committee has established 5 inspection and assessment teams to directly evaluate the implementation of this content at Party committee levels and units. Based on the conclusions of the inspection teams, supervision as well as analysis and clear identification of the pending recommendations, the City has issued a plan to implement and overcome the existing problems in the implementation of audit recommendations.
As one of the localities with a large number of outstanding audit recommendations, Chairman of the Hồ Chí Minh City People’s Committee Phan Văn Mãi said that after the clarification session, the City will list the immediate tasks to be done. In which, the City will categorize the recommendations to direct the implementation of recommendations for large revenue recovery, focusing on resolving obstacles under the jurisdiction of the City. For difficult and infeasible issues or beyond jurisdiction, the City will recommend competent agencies to resolve them thoroughly. Importantly, according to Mr. Phan Văn Mãi, through the clarification session, awareness and responsibilities in implementing audit recommendations need to be raised to a new level.
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Clearing “obstacles” due to mechanisms…
Together with strong commitments in dealing with outstanding audit recommendations, the opinions at the clarification session also clearly identify a root cause leading to delays, non-implementation of conclusions, and recommendations of audits in the past, which are due to “obstacles” in mechanisms and policies.
According to delegate Phạm Thị Thanh Mai, practical surveys show that the pending recommendations from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, the Ministry of Transport, or some ministries and localities also lie somewhere in the constraints of mechanisms, policies, which have caused difficulties and confusion for units and localities in implementation.
Therefore, the concurring opinions argue that to promote the more complete and timely implementation of conclusions and recommendations, it is necessary to start removing obstacles and shortcomings in mechanisms and policies.
For example, through audits, the State Audit Office has made recommendations related to the leasing of non-residential assets of public service units that do not comply with regulations; weaknesses in the management of state-owned rental funds that are not used for residential purposes…
However, according to Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Hà Minh Hải, currently, the application of general regulations on management, use, and exploitation of state-owned assets at state agencies, public service units, and enterprises in specific cases of management and business organizations is still inappropriate. The lack of necessary general regulations for the management, use, and exploitation of the state’s housing and land funds has had a great impact on the process of formation, use, exploitation, operation, and handling of assets, affecting the quality of service provision, state budget revenue.
To have a basis for removing difficulties and obstacles in financial management as well as implementing audit recommendations, Hanoi proposes that the Government promptly issue a Decree on management, use, and exploitation of non-residential state-owned housing funds; amending and supplementing Decree No. 151/2017/ND-CP, including regulations on the use of public assets for business purposes, lease, joint venture, and association; at the same time clearly defining difficulties and obstacles in using regular state budget sources to renovate, upgrade, expand facilities, and improve the efficiency of public assets use…
Regarding regulations on the management, use, and exploitation of non-residential state-owned housing funds, the Government has entrusted the Ministry of Finance to preside over and prepare a decree on this matter. Currently, the Ministry of Finance is compiling opinions from ministries, sectors, localities and requesting the appraisal opinion of the Ministry of Justice to submit it to the Government for early issuance. Regarding the use of public assets for business purposes, the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft decree amending and supplementing some provisions of Decree No. 151/2017/ND-CP. In the coming time, the Government will pass this Decree.
(Deputy Minister of Finance Cao Anh Tuấn)
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Hồ Chí Minh City People’s Committee Phan Văn Mãi reflected that the process of implementing conclusions and recommendations still lacks uniformity in the application of laws between agencies. This also makes the process of implementing audit recommendations different, slower, and not yet bring final results. “In fact, there are recommendations at the time of the conclusion that are appropriate, but by this time they are not feasible, and we need to reconsider. This problem is also difficult for the audit office to implement on its own but requires consensus, leadership, and coordination with each other,” said Mr. Mãi.
At the clarification session, many suggestions also requested the Finance and Budget Committee, the Budget and Finance Audit Office to report to competent bodies to have solutions to remove obstacles in implementing audit recommendations due to objective reasons such as dissolved and bankrupt enterprises or temporarily stopped activities and recommendations from many years ago that cannot be implemented due to changes in mechanisms, policies…
Accepting these suggestions, Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee Lê Quang Mạnh said that the Finance and Budget Committee will propose to the Government, the Prime Minister to direct central agencies in time to guide and handle according to their authority, or report to competent agencies to handle proposals and recommendations within the state management functions of Ministries, sectors, and agencies.
At the same time, proposing that the Government promptly study and propose amendments to related legal regulations such as the State Budget Law or Decrees, Circulars, guidelines of Ministries, and sectors… in order to create a legal corridor to carry out better audit conclusions, prevent violations in public financial management, and public asset management.
Enhancing the role and responsibilities of the top leaders
All solutions to innovate and improve the results of implementing recommendations all originate from human factors, in which the top leaders play a key role. Therefore, to truly make a difference in implementing audit conclusions and recommendations, many opinions also emphasize the role and responsibilities of the leaders of agencies and units in directing and urging the implementation of audit recommendations.
Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee Lê Quang Mạnh assessed that with the very determined involvement of the City Party Committee, Provincial Party Committee, and the People’s Committees of provinces and cities, as well as the attention of the leadership of the ministries in directing and urging the implementation of resolutions and audit recommendations; solving problems and carrying out amendments, additions, and modifications to legal normative documents – has brought very positive results recently.
Agreeing with the above view, State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn emphasized that in the past time, according to the provisions of the State Audit Law, the State Audit Office has made great efforts in monitoring and urging the implementation of audit recommendations.
However, the State Audit Office also candidly acknowledges that although the industry has made efforts, the achieved results have not been as expected. Therefore, in the coming time, the State Audit Office will try to overcome the shortcomings and limitations to better perform its responsibilities in urging the implementation of audit recommendations; determined to improve the quality of audit reports, ensuring that the audit recommendations are clear, correct person, and thing, thereby increasing the proportion of implementing recommendations.
State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn
At the same time, the State Audit Office will continue to strengthen the quality control of audits, require the full implementation of the procedures, standards, and guidelines of the industry, fully implement the regulations of the audit mission; clearly define the responsibilities of the organization and individuals in collecting evidence, auditing log…
The State Audit Office will also enhance the application of information technology in audit activities; regularly coordinate and exchange with the audited unit to create unity and consensus to make clear, feasible conclusions and recommendations; accompany with units, localities to remove obstacles immediately in implementing audit recommendations…
In addition, many opinions also suggest that the State Audit Office needs to strengthen transparency in audit activities; publicize the results of implementing audit recommendations; as Chairman of the National Assembly Vương Đình Huệ has emphasized: Transparency is the most effective “weapon” of audit activities.
Promoting the role, responsibilities of leaders
All solutions for innovation, thereby improving the results of implementing recommendations, stem from human factors, and in which, the leaders play a key role. Therefore, to truly create a transformation in implementing audit conclusions and recommendations, many opinions also emphasize the role and responsibilities of the leaders of agencies and units in directing and urging the implementation of audit recommendations.
Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee Lê Quang Mạnh evaluated that with the strong determination of the City Party Committee, Provincial Party Committee, and the People’s Committees of provinces and cities, as well as the attention of the leadership of ministries in directing and urging the implementation of audit conclusions and recommendations; solving problems and carrying out additions, adjustments, and amendments to legal normative documents – has brought very positive results lately.
Agreeing with the above idea, State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn emphasized: “Practical experience shows that in agencies and units where Party committees and the leaders pay attention to the implementation of audit conclusions and recommendations, the implementation results are very high; there are even localities that have implemented 100% of audit recommendations in consecutive years.”
With the role as the subject of supervision, from the results of the clarification session, the leadership of the Finance and Budget Committee said that it will propose the Standing Committee of the National Assembly to direct the Ethnic Council, the National Assembly Standing Committees, and National Assembly Delegates to increase monitoring activities to implement the conclusions of the State Audit Office. At the same time, it proposes that the National Assembly Standing Committee appoint the Finance and Budget Committee to work with the State Audit Office, the ministries, agencies, and localities to continue to monitor and complete the necessary data to synthesize reports to the National Assembly when considering and approving the state budget settlement for 2022.
With a series of “dissected” issues, identified from a multidimensional perspective, on the overall level, the clarification session was successful and achieved the set goal when it was able to answer fundamental practical issues, namely: clarifying the situation, identifying causes and responsibilities; unifying viewpoints, solutions to create a substantial and effective transformation in the implementation of audit conclusions, and recommendations.
The National Assembly and the Government are very concerned about reviewing and removing policy conflicting points, overlapping, and issues in legal documents and documents. When audit conclusions, recommendations are very correct and valuable, discovered through the practice of life, they must be rectified to help open up policy constraints, promote economic and social development.
Permanent member of the Finance and Budget Committee Lê Minh Nam
