Obert Mpofu spent $318,000 on travel allowances

Former Mines and Mining Development Minister Obert Mpofu is under spotlight after his former ministry "illegally" spent about $320,000 on travel and subsistence expenses in 2012, a recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General has revealed.

The report showed that the funds were "unconstitutionally" borrowed from the Mining Development Fund (MDF) since treasury had not drawn up parameters governing the operations of the Fund in terms of the Public Finance Management Act.

"The borrowings were unconstitutional and in breach of Mines and Mining Development Fund constitution whose core objective among others is to support and sustain the mining tittles system.

"However a total of $108,283 had been reimbursed to the Fund by the end of the year, leaving a balance of $210,711 which is still outstanding," said Comptroller and Auditor General Mildred Chiri.

Chari said as a result, the expenditure of $4,7 million appearing in the appropriation account was understated by the $210,711 which was not reimbursed.

"The implication is that there is risk of undermining the government budgeting process if funds are borrowed unprocedurally and it promotes financial indiscipline," she said.
According to the report, two receipt books with 200 pages were not made available for audit.

The two receipt books were signed for by the ministry's chief accountant when ordered from Print-flow but there was no evidence that they ever reached the ministry or that they were used for any official purposes.

"The books could have been obtained and used clandestinely. There is risk that the receipt books could have been used for fraudulent activities with the intention to defraud the public in general and the miners in particular," Chari said.

The report also expressed concern over the fact that officials were being paid mobile phone allowances in excess of their prescribed limits set by Treasury despite repeated warnings against the practice.