Late payments’ incurring more Govt costs’

July 02, 2009 06:16:32 PM

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Late payments of Value Added Tax (VAT) by some government departments are incurring additional costs for government.

The Public Accounts Committee noted this in its report following the recent completion of its deliberation into a part of the Auditor General’s report on government spending in 2004. 

“The audit (had) revealed that some Ministries and Departments had to pay penalties for not paying their VAT on time thus incurring additional costs for government. 

“The Committee noted that those ministries and departments had not maintained their own ledgers and therefore were relying mainly on VAT reports produced by the General Ledgers System of the Ministry of Finance,” it said.

“When the reports from the system were not produced on time, the Ministries and Departments would not be aware as to when the payments should be made or the actual VAT amount and inevitably contribute to its late payment.”

According to government’s record of its financial year ended December 31, 2004, it had paid out $92.7 million in VAT, a drop compared to the $93.7 million in 2003. 

Its VAT payment improved in 2005 where it paid Fiji Islands Revenue and Customs Authority $100.8 million in VAT payments.

However, these figures would have been more if government ministries had kept proper records. 

The five-member public accounts committee is chaired by former Transport minister Manu Korovulavula and its other members are former government ministers Taufa Vakatale, Laufitu Malani and vice president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Fiji Tahir Munshi.