Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa on Tuesday charged accountants on acurate financial reporting to enhance governance and financial policies in the country.
Diri gave the charge while declaring open the 2nd session of the Mandatory Continuing Profession Development (MCPD) Programme organised by the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event is being held at the Ecumenical Centre, Yenagoa, in Bayelsa.
The Governor, who was represented at the event by his Deputy, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, said that government needs accurate report and advice of accountants to make informed financial decisions.
He noted that the burden was on the shoulders of the accountants to discharge the responsibility to ensure that government and other institutions have correct and proper reporting in place.
Diri noted that countries, states, organisations and even families had made destructive choices due to wrong reporting, in terms of available resources and how those resources could be utilised.
According to him, apart from man, the other most important resource was finance, because even the Holy Bible alluded that money answers all things.
He added that for money not to be the root of all evil, then money had to be properly reported and utilised efficiently, stressing that the responsibility to do that squarely lies with the accountants.
Describing the theme and the various lecture topics of the MCPD Programme as exciting and apt, the governor urged all the participants to make the best out of the programme to enhance their professional skills and development in the accounting field.
He applauded accountants in the Bayelsa Civil Service for saving the state government the burden of employing consultancy services to secure the World Bank loan in respect of COVID-19.
“I want to state that the themes of your conferences have always been exciting. Your theme here and others your National President and Chairman of Council has referred to, are quite apt and contemporary.
“Proper accounting and reporting is the glory of the accountant. So once you are not able to discharge this responsibility or duty, it then means that your glory is no longer with you.
“I want to encourage you to use the opportunity of this Mandatory Continuing Professional Development programme to take the opportunities to build your capacity and competencies.
“Without positive and accurate reporting, governance would become a challenge.
“Countries, societies, and even families have made decisions that are very colossal as a result of wrong reporting in terms of the available resources and how those resources can be applied.
“There is no way the government’s decisions will not be dislocated or disabled, if proper financial reporting is not done by you as accountants.”
He said: “Our reporting must not end one plus two in our balance sheets but it must be analytical, futuristic and dynamic.
“Our financial reporting should be able to bring out all the dynamics and variables that will affect our micro and macro-economic decisions to make our economy viable.
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“When we talk about resources, apart from man, the other most important resource is finance, because even the Bible acknowledges the power of money.
“It says money answereth all things. In any case, it also gave a proviso that the love of money is the root of all evil,” he said.
In his keynote address, the National President and Chairman of Council, ANAN, Prof. Benjamin Osisioma, lauded the Bayelsa Government for the steps taken so far to develop the state.
Osisioma said Bayelsa is reckoned as a significant state in the country because of its viable and manifest contributions to the nation’s economic, political and social development.
The ANAN helsman noted that the theme of the programme was: “Dynamics of Corporate Reporting and Governance”.
He said the theme was designed to inform accountants of processes of bringing together material information about organisations’ strategies, performance, prospects and governance in a way that reflects the economic, social and environmental contexts within which they operate.
(NAN)
