Programme Manager of the Centre for Local Governance Advocacy (CLGA), Herbert Apaloo, says poor implementation of both internal and external audit recommendations continues to undermine financial accountability within local assemblies.

Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Thursday (16 July), Apaloo said auditing recorded the poorest performance among the five public financial management pillars assessed in the 2025 Public Financial Management Compliance League Table.

“For this assessment, the audit side was the weakest area. Majority of the assemblies fell short in implementing recommendations from both internal auditors and the Ghana Audit Service,” he said.

He explained that assemblies lose significant marks when the Auditor-General cites them for financial irregularities and procurement infractions.

According to him, while CLGA’s assessment does not investigate corruption directly, weak compliance creates opportunities for misuse of public funds.

“If procurement is not done properly, you don’t ensure value for money. If internal auditors are not doing their work well, it creates opportunities for misuse of funds,” he stated.

Apaloo identified other recurring weaknesses including poor stakeholder consultation during planning and budgeting, low use of the Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS), inadequate segregation of duties in finance offices and poor record keeping.

He said many assemblies were unable to provide documentary evidence to support activities they claimed to have undertaken.

“If evidence cannot be produced, it means either the activity was not done or records were not properly kept,” he said.

The CLGA official described most of the identified challenges as technical rather than political, saying officers often failed to comply fully with existing guidelines issued by oversight institutions.

He urged assemblies to strengthen internal controls and ensure recommendations from internal auditors are fully implemented before external audits are conducted.