Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN) has urgedthe Federal Government to overhaul the internal financial control system in the public sector to eradicate corruption and create efficiencyItsPresident,Mrs Maryam Ladi-Ibrahim, said that the overhaul should be in line with the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Act 2011. She said the internal control system should be made to be working, saying the rules and regulations were there but they were not being followed. The FRC Act was among others, meant to guarantee credible financial reporting regime in both public and private sector entities in Nigeria and for wealth creation and economic transformation. The Act which replaces the Nigerian Accounting Standards Board (NASB) Act 22 of 2003, is also meant to give guidance on issues relating to financial reporting and corporate governance to professional, institutional and regulatory bodies in Nigeria. The ANAN president said that government departments, ministries and other sectors of governance must take the financial reporting system very serious. Ladi-Ibrahim said financial reporting must be done on time to eliminate corruption in the public sector.She said any report delayed would become useless and meaningless, adding that the reporting system should be more of preventive measure. Ladi-Ibrahim explained that the FRC Act made provisions for transparent reporting in every activity of the economy. 'It is good that government has signed the FRC Act which replaces the Nigerian Accounting Standards Board. 'In this new Act, there are lots of challenges facing the professional accountants and economists,'' Ladi-Ibrahim said. According to her, the President and the National Assembly did a good job by acting fast on the FRC Act. Ladi-Ibrahim said the most critical to all Nigerians at the moment was for the citizens to appreciate that so much was being revealed to them at the on-going probe on fuel subsidy. 'By the time there is a good corporate governance that encompasses accountability, honesty, transparency and probity, then the nation would be able to have a system that works,'' she said. The ANAN president acknowledged that the nation had true professionals who could add value to the good corporate governance in the county, adding that such professionals should be given a chance. The Accountant suggested that government should alert professional accountants and economists and give them room to do their jobs well. Ladi-Ibrahim said, 'while the economist analyses, the professional accountant looks at the holistic nature of a financial report and the entire project value.''She, however, noted that there were lots of challenges facing the professional accountants and economists in eliminating corruption in the system. Ladi-Ibrahim said all professionals, especially the professional accountants, who were being looked upon as having an eye on all financial matters must take their jobs seriously. The Accountant said that government must also be ready to take professional advice, adding that 'as professionals we must go beyond just advice and getting to the point of whistle-blowing. She advised that professional accountants could alert the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent and Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation which had the responsibility to carry out special and forensic audits.'If corruption is not cleared, the transformation agenda of government cannot be achieved,'' she said The ANAN president, however, suggested that the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation should be made to be independent with a budgetary provision for it. 'With what has happened in the oil sector, it is time for government to begin to appreciate the work of the auditor-general,'' the Accountant said. The association (ANAN) is ready to collaborate effectively with relevant agencies of government that need to actually put up the right structure to make the governance of the country easy, she said.The ANAN president said this would be in such a way that accountability would be the watchword of everybody. Ladi-Ibrahim said, 'as a professional body, we are gingering all our members to live up to expectations as entrenched in the professional code of ethics.
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