NEA SAYS IT STOPPED D15K MONTHLY FUEL PAYMENTS TO VP, ENVIRON MINISTER

The executive director of National Environment Agency (NEA) Dr Dawda Badjie yesterday told the National Assembly Finance and Public Accounts Committee that the D15,000 fuel allowances paid to the Vice President and the Minister of Environment which auditors flagged as unjustified has been stopped.

‎The committee was considering the financial statements and audit report of the NEA from 2021 to 2023. Auditors from the National Audit Office flagged in their report that fuel coupons worth D180,000 and D15,000 per month were issued to the Minister of Environment and the Vice President and there was no justification provided by the management to back the payments.

‎Asked to explain reasons for this unjustifiable payment, NEA director of administration and finance, Ebrima K Bojang, stated that the payment has been stopped and no fuel coupons are being issued to the minister and vice president.

‎”This has now been stopped based on the audit recommendation. We are not issuing any fuel coupons to these officials,” the finance director confirmed.

‎But dissatisfied committee chairman Alagie Darboe said they want to know the justification for the payments.

‎But director Bojang said he could not provide any justification and referred the committee to the executive director for answers.

‎When asked for justification, Dr Dawda Badjie stated: “It was a previous management decision to give some fuel coupons to the vice president who was the chairperson of the National Environment Management Council and also to the minister of the environment our the line minister and chairperson of the admin and finance committee. When, I took over, I did not see the justification and I actually stopped the payments.”

‎Dr Badjie further stated that he did not find any records of justification for the allowances.

‎Asked whether the beneficiaries were entitled to the allowances according to NEA regulations, Dr Badjie said he could not find a justification for payments in the regulations.

Source: The Standard