GOVERNMENT INTERNAL AUDIT ACCOUNTABILITY IN MINISTRIES / EXTRA-MINISTERIAL DEPARTMENT A CASE STUDY OF THE OFFICE OF THE AUDITOR-GENERAL OF ENUGU STATE

Chapter one

Introduction

Background of the study

the practices of auditing originated from the necessity to impose some system of check upon persons whose business involves to record the receipt and disbursement of money on behalf of theirs. However, due to the crudeness of accounting methods in the early stages of civilization individuals checked accounts for themselves. The impetus given to trade and commerce in the 15th century by the Renanssance resulted to the discovery of a more scientific system of accounting and in 1494 LUCCA PACIOL, an Italian publisher of the principle of Double Entries Book-keeping in Venice. Thus, by this discovery it because possible to record all sort of merchandise transactions involving all matters of accounts and this development resulted to the application of Audit on these records. The mechanical invention of the Eighteenth centuries which lead to the industrial revolution coupled with increased need for financial assistance to finance ambigions projects explained the emergence of several joint stock companies and corporate under-takings utilizing enormous capital under the management of few individuals. Under these circumstances the advantages to be gained by utilizing the services of professional auditor were apparent to be commercialized publicly, generally to force the operator of these enterprises to account for the results of all transactions under-taking by them, on the company behalf during the period of stewardship. In order to attest for the emergence of auditing as a profession, it is widely accepted that autonomous expertise and the service ideal are not most distributive attributes of a profession, together with the existence of a systematic body of knowledge and authority recognized by the client or user. All these have been defined for and are true of auditing. The need for auditing mostly government audit exist in the operations of government and institutions. Based on the above management, burden has become of greater importance because of wider delegation of authority and responsibility. The need for honest, candid public disclosure exist for federal state and local government expands an increasing scheme of the gross material product and in so doing relied upon the communication of financial data to ensure that the cost it involves are reasonable for regardless of weather the project be a mass transit system or foreign aid programme the financial problems of federal state and local government in recent years is a further reminder that all organisation must be held accountable for proper management of resources entrusted to them if they are changed. Efficient allocation of materials and financial resources necessities that industries, organization enbitus are subjected to goods accounting and reporting since it forms an effective means of assessing capability. Inadequate accurate reporting on the other hand conceal waste and inefficiency and thereby present our economic resources from being allocated in a material manner