Bad records derail OPA audit of NMC

The Office of the Public Auditor is increasing efforts that would pave the way for the completion of its long-standing audit of the Northern Marianas College, which has been ongoing for more than two years now.

Public Auditor Leo LaMotte said the CNMI’s lone higher learning institution’s previous records were badly kept, hampering OPA’s efforts to complete its audit-investigation promptly.

“NMC records were bad. Some of the documents that are vital to our audit are hard to find. You can’t finish an audit-investigation promptly if you are dealing with bad records,” said Mr. LaMotte.

OPA started its audit of the NMC two years ago or shortly after the administration of Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio took over in January 1998.

According to Mr. LaMotte, public auditors are now in the process of consolidating documents and other important records that are needed to completely fiscally scrutinize some of the College’s major operations.

He said the audit-investigation of the government-run higher learning institution covers scholarships, use of credit cards, operations of the bookstore and snack bar, and the Vocational Education.

The government’s scholarship program was earlier hounded by controversies due to the administration’s decision to cut its funding.
Also, almost half of Northern Marianas students who have been granted financial assistance under the Paul Manglona Scholarship since school year 1991 were suspended from the program.

Government statistics noted that 43 recipients of the Paul Manglona Scholarship, created under Public Law 7-32, have been dropped from the program for failure to comply with grade and credit requirements.

Existing scholarship policies require grant recipients to maintain an average grade of 2.0 and complete 12 credits per semester to qualify for the program for the succeeding semester.

While stressing that bad NMC books derail OPA’s audit, Mr. LaMotte said they are slowly making progress and that they expect to draft a preliminary report on a couple of subjects in the next few months.

“We have assigned more auditors to the investigation to increase our efforts to eventually complete our audit of the NMC and make sure that everything is accounted for,” he said in an interview.

OPA earlier recommended that the Northern Marianas College Business Office should adopt and implement clear policies and administrative sanctions in order to ensure better control over cash collections.

OPA’s recommendation came following the conclusion of its investigation on the alleged embezzlement of funds collected at the NMC-Business Office between Nov. 5 and 9, 1999, involving $10,500 in total collections.

Mr. LaMotte said this incident was caused by the absence of adequate internal controls over cash collections. Due to the absence of sufficient control over collections at the College, funds can easily be misappropriated without immediately being detected.

“There has been no genuine concern by NMC management on how the Business Office operates, although the function of the office is very critical for sound financial management,” he said.

OPA has also suggested the use of control features in computerized accounting system such as passwords or log-on identifications. It noted the need to limit the access to specific users and key officials.

It called for the adoption of periodic audits or surprise cash counts for handlers of petty cash and change funds, as well as requiring cash vouchers and other supporting documents for payments in the files at all times.