Secretary to Lagos State Government (SSG), Folashade Jaji, has tasked auditors in public service to embrace technology in the execution of their duties, saying it is the only to maximise service delivery.
Jaji gave the charge at the 10th annual auditors’ retreat held Thursday in Lagos. According to her, the public who benefit from the works of the auditors must be made to see that they (auditors) were truly delivering service.
“We all know the role technology plays, and I think it is very critical that we be on top of technology. We have to go along with technology otherwise we would be left behind. We won’t be able to achieve a lot of things,” she said.
The SSG, who described technology as the future of work, encouraged the auditors to ensure they fully key into it so “that they can move with the time and be in the position to contribute to the development of the country.
“The public must see that our services are different, or we’re delivering services differently, more efficiently, and more effectively,” said Jaji at the retreat which theme was “institutional framework for sustainable infrastructure maintenance: prospects and challenges.”
The event brought auditors in Lagos State to find solution to the infrastructural deficit be-devilling Lagos State’s smart city plans.
She added that auditors in the state must ensure that public funds were properly utilised for the purpose for which they’ve been task for. Once they realise that auditors are going to play their roles, there will be no cutting of corners, everybody will make sure that what is expected of them, that everything is done, and they will have quality and feel satisfied that they have done their ethos, which is value for money concept,” she said.
Helen Morenike Deile, the auditor-general of the Lagos State, observed that auditing if properly handled, the people should feel the impact of the activities of the auditors as they deal in public financial management circle, hence the significance of their role in holding government accountable.
“We’re to report on the activities of government, whether they have carried out the activity as stipulated or as guided. Basically, what we do is to ensure there is value for money in our projects,” she said, shedding light on their work.
“In a way, the office of the state Auditor General is putting in the very best to ensure that projects in the state are being done accordingly and that people derived the benefits from the project. We’ve particularly chosen this topic this year because we notice all around that there is infrastructural deficit,” and there is need for us to look into it and come up with reports that will help the executive to decide and come up with what actions to be taken at the appropriate time,” Deile said
Commenting on the theme, the deputy director of forensic and investigation, office of the auditor general, Oyenuga Adewale Samuel, said it was carefully chosen having considered the level of “decay in our various public infrastructures and the spate of abandonment of projects at all levels of government.”
