Over 198 billion new Leone (£6.7 million) may be approved as budget enhancement for the operations of MDAs in the country for the present fiscal year.

The close to 60 ministries, agencies and departments in operation have already requested this from the Ministry of Finance (MoF) as budgetary enhancements. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the parliament disclosed this to FS at a recent sitting in Freetown. Hon Ibrahim Tawa Conteh, Chair of PAC speaking on behalf of parliament said however that the request has been received by PAC and is subject to the approval of the House.

Adding that such requests before now were being processed by the Ministry of Finance without recourse to parliament. Budgetary enhancements are monies outside the approved budget by Parliament for the services of the Republic of Sierra Leone.

Meanwhile, the PAC has sanctioned the Union Trust Bank (UTB) and ordered it to pay 460Million old Leone to the government. The monies are to be paid into SLRSA’ account. The Bank’s Manager for the Kenema Branch (name not disclosed) was equally ordered to pay 11 million old Leone for failing to undertake due diligence during a transaction that resulted in discrepancies in some financial transactions with the government. The PAC is equally pushing for his demotion from managerial position.

These sanctions are coming on the heels of a 471 million Leone query raised in the Auditor General's Report for 2022 relating to financial discrepancies between the account holder and the Bank.