The Minister of Finance Dennis K. Vandi has on Thursday 3rd March 2022 called on the council and membership of the Institute for Chartered Accountants of Sierra Leone to dialogue and collaborate more on issues of national interest.
He made this call when the new president of the Institute Madam Blanche Gooding and her team paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Finance for the first time since they were elected.
Minister Vandi furthered that government cannot function properly without professional bodies like ICASL, stating that the Institute did not handle the issue of the suspension of the Auditor General and her deputy properly by putting out a press release without discussing with the government on the issue.
In her statement, Madam Blanche Gooding, president of ICASL stated that the press release issued on the suspension of the Auditor General was not in any way to challenge government decision but rather the institute was trying to seek more clarifications on the issue for their investigation concerning their members.
She continued that ICASL is a professional institution ensuring that its members perform their responsibilities according to international best practices.
“We regret the misunderstanding caused by the press release and commit to working with the government to promote transparency and accountability in Sierra Leone” she added.
Madam Gooding also calls for further collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and government, thanking the Minister for his support and timely payment of government subvention to the institute while they await the 2022 subvention.
Deputy Minister of Finance II Bockarie Kalokoh commends ICASL for the move to meet with the Minister of Finance. He commit to looking into the issues especially taking the revised ICASL Act to parliament to the amendment.
Principal Deputy Financial Secretary, Mathew Dingie and Accountant General Richard Williams congratulated the new president and also call for more consultations as he commits to addressing the outstanding issues.
Chief Economist Alimamy Bangura stated that bodies like ICASL are very critical to the government, especially in the formulation of fiscal policies.
