Cap. 431 Art. 13Accounts and audit.

(1) The Chief Executive Officer shall ensure that proper accounts and other records in respect of the operations of the Council are kept, and shall ensure that a statement of accounts in respect of each financial year is prepared.

(2) The accounts of the Council shall be audited by an auditor appointed by the Chief Executive Officer:

Provided that the Minister responsible for finance may, after consultation with the Minister, require the books and other accounts of the Council to be audited or examined by the Auditor General who shall, for this purpose, have the power to carry out such physical checking and other verifications as may be deemed necessary.

(3) After the end of each financial year and in any case not later than the date on which the estimates of the Council are forwarded to the Minister, the Chief Executive Officer shall ensure that a copy of the statement of accounts duly audited be transmitted to the Prime Minister, to the Minister responsible for finance and to the Minister, together with a copy of any report made by the auditors on that statement or on the accounts of the Council.

(4) The Minister shall, as soon as possible, and in any case not later than eight (8) weeks after receiving a copy of every such statement and report, or if at any time during that period the House of Representatives is not in session, within eight (8) weeks from the beginning of the next following session, cause a copy of every such statement and report to be laid on the Table of the House of Representatives.

(5) The financial year of the Council shall commence on the 1st January and shall end on the 31st December of every calendar year:

Provided that the accounts of the Council for the year 2025, shall cover the period from September 2024 to December 2025.