Inspection Committees Intensify Financial Oversight in Municipalities
Recent reports indicate that the Central Administration has issued new directives aimed at guiding the investigations carried out by the General Inspectorate of Territorial Administration. These committees have been deployed to several municipalities across the Casablanca-Settat, Marrakech-Safi, Rabat-Salé-Kénitra, and Fez-Meknes regions to scrutinize financial transactions and contracts that have raised objections from regional authorities due to mismanagement. This proactive move comes in the wake of numerous reports, backed by data and documentation, highlighting irregularities in public spending and contract management since the beginning of this year.
The inspection efforts will encompass a comprehensive review of operational expenditures, procurement processes, study contracts, and equipment acquisitions, as well as invoices related to fuel, maintenance, and utility services such as water and electricity. Additionally, the audits will extend to the management of vehicle fleets and IT equipment, focusing on the allocated budgets for these operations and their compliance with governance principles and expenditure rationalization practices.
Sources reveal that the inspection teams are particularly focused on municipalities that have expressed grievances regarding the financial management practices implemented by regional authorities. They will also issue new inquiries to the mayors of these municipalities through local authorities to justify the identified irregularities in managing public contracts dating back to last year. The scope of the audits is expected to include waste management contracts, which have received specific attention after supervisory authorities refused to finalize several contracts due to their inflated costs compared to the services provided.
Moreover, these contracts have been the subject of detailed audits, especially concerning the actual cost of services and adherence to the principle of efficiency in public spending. The new auditing processes will not only focus on financial aspects but will also verify the legality of the procedures followed in awarding contracts and the documentation associated with them, including tender specifications.
Inspectors from the Interior Ministry have previously included significant observations in their reports, highlighting clauses deemed exclusionary to competition in municipal contract files, raising suspicions that these contracts may have been directed towards specific companies. The reports also indicated signs of favoritism in contract awards and potential personal relationships between beneficiary companies and municipal officials. Additionally, there are concerns regarding mutual arrangements among officials from different municipalities to award contracts to certain companies.
The reports documented instances related to requests for IT equipment, attendance systems, and surveillance cameras that were rejected by regional authorities due to suspicions of favoritism towards specific companies. The dominance of a limited number of companies in recurring contracts within certain regions has also raised questions about equal opportunity, particularly in light of complaints from emerging businesses regarding exclusion from such contracts.
These actions by the central administration coincide with a tightening of financial oversight on municipalities, following directives issued by the Ministry of Interior urging rationalization of expenses and reordering of priorities. The instructions emphasize prioritizing mandatory expenditures such as salaries, essential service payments, and loans, while also stressing the importance of continuing major and structural projects and ensuring partners adhere to their funding commitments, all aimed at enhancing financial discipline and improving governance in the management of local resources.
As reported by hespress.com.
