ABSTRACT
This research work is created on the appraisal of the success and failure of public sector accountability in Nigeria. The cardinal objectives of the research work are; To find out of what extent, the public fund have been prudently utilized to maximize this welfare in Nigeria. To ascertain the tax payers attitude toward payments. To create a general awareness on the part of public fund to demand for an account from their representatives. The researcher used primary and secondary source of data. Three research hypothesis were formulated and tested. Chi-square was used to test three hypothesis. The finding from the text of the hypothesis show that some government department are not being ratified in Enugu state. On would then wonder what happened to the income they generate the audit vigilance is lacking. It discovered during this research investigation that some government establishment does not use budget as a tool for their financial performance and control which has lead reckless expenditure that lack authorization and control of any nature. Some have not budgetary book of account to any meaningful standard And recommended that overnment must ensure that all politicians declare their assets before assuming office. Their assets are again assessed on the completion of office by the politicians.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Approval Page ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract ix
Table of Contents x
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
- Background of the study 1
- Statement of the Problem 5
- Objective of the study 6
- Research Questions 7
- Formulation of Hypotheses 8
- Significance of the Study 9
- Scope/ Delimitation of the Study 11
- Definition of Terms 11
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 39
References
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design 47
- Source of Data 49
- Instrument for Data Collection 49
- Area of Study 51
- Population of the Study 52
- Sample Size Determination 52
- Method of Presentation of Data 53
- Techniques of Data Analysis 54
References
CHAPTER FOUR: DATAPRESENTATION AND RESULT
4.1 Data Presentation and findings 57
4.2 Discussion of Findings 65
4.3 Statement of Hypothesis 70
References
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND, CONCLUSIONS
5.1 Summary 76
5.2 Recommendations 78
5.3 Conclusion 80
Bibliography
Appendix
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- Background of the Study
The Nigeria society is filled with stories of wrong practices such as stories of ghost worker on the pay roll of ministries, extra-ministerial department and parastatals, frauds, embezzlements and setting ablaze of offices housing sensitive documents and corruption are fund everywhere in the country (Okwoli, 2004).
According to Bello (2001), huge amount of naira is lost through one financial malpractice or the other in Nigeria which to say the least, drains the nation’s meager resources through fraudulent means with far-reaching and attendant consequences on the development or even socio-economic or political programs of the nation. Billions of naira is lost in the public sector every year through fraudulent means. This represent only the amount that is ferreted out and made public. Indeed much more substantial or huge sums are lost in undetected frauds or those that are for one reason or the hushed up. Appah and Appiah (2010) argues that cases of fraud is prevalent in the Nigerian public sector that every segment of the public service, could seem to be involved in one way or the other in some of these nasty acts.
Okoh and Ohwoyibo (2009), opine that accountability reflects the need for government and its agencies to serves the public effectively in accordance with the laws of the land. Appah (2010) point out that with the number and monetary value of public sector activities has increased substantially.This increase in activities has brought with it an increased demand for accountability of public officers who manage these activities of the public.
Achuas (2009), says “serious consideration is being given to the need to be more accountability for the often vast amounts of investment in resources at the command of governments, which exercise administrative and political authority over the actions and affairs of political units of people. Government spending is a very big business and the public demands to know whether the huge outlays of money are being spent wisely for public interest.” Accountability is a fundamental value for any political system. Citizens should have the right to know what actions have been taken in their name, and they should have been taken in their names, and they should have the means to force correction actions when government acts in an illegal, immoral or unjust manner (Peters, 1999). Accountability is also important for government. It provides government with the means of understanding how programs may fill and finding ways that can make programme perform better. Kaufman (2005) argues that an emphasis on accountability by citizens is one aspect of the growing emphasis on eliminating corruption and promoting transparency in government.
However, the issues of accountability in Nigeria is a fundamental problem because of the high level of corruption in all levels of government in the country. The transparency international global corruption perception index in a October 2010 ranked Nigeria 134 from it 130 position in 2009 and 121 in 2008. The 2010 CPI, drawn on a scale from 10 (highly clean) to 0 (highly corrupt), showed that Nigeria scored, 2.4, and is ranked 134 amongst the 178 countries surveyed. This fearful situation of Nigeria lack of financial accountability in the public sector provided the need for this paper.
Therefore, the objectives of this paper is to examine the accountability of public officer in the management of the financial resource of the country and means of achieving an accountable and transparent society like that of Denmark, New Zealand and Singapore that ranked first in the 2010 CPI with scores of 9.3.
Every society is made up of individuals, who agree to come under one unit and to be governed as a n entity for the society to function effectively, some individual must manage its affairs as it affects the society over all good, be it financial goal, social goal or political goal. Against this background of managing the affairs of the society funds must be raised and used to achieve some of the goal of the society. The funds must rest in the hands of the people representative, to the administered in such away that maximum social benefit to be achieved.
To the extent of the funds contributed by the individual and entrusted in the hands of representative, service will be provided by the use of funds. Eventually then, these representative will not only keep custody of the funds, they will account to the people who contributed to the funds. This is based however on the existing of full democratic system of government.
Back here in Nigeria when the public sector accounting did not develop to any meaningful extent, until the coming of the British accounting for the public funds has been posting a lot of problems since the past 2003-2012 era. It is unfortunate that all efforts by the government to encourage public sector accounting and not achieve the desired outcome of providing adequate information regarding the use of the public funds. Proper accountability should demand that, the extent of financial performance of any government for the period ruled by the government.
1.2 Statement of Problems
The bone of the problem of the Nigerian public sector have been the improver accountability and management of the tax payers money entrusted in the lends of their representatives. These representative has rather to wealth measurement at the expenses of the tax payers, when it was clear that little or no punishment was meted on them. They would rather be given titles as a encouragement for their fraudulent practices.
Consequently, there is poor rate of development and very poor standard of living of the average tax payers. They researcher is therefore interested in increasing the awareness of the need for their trustees as their representative to properly account for the tax payers fund.
- Objectives Of The Study
The cardinal objectives of the research work are: –
- To find out to what extent, the public funds have been prudently utilized to maximize his welfare in Nigeria for the period of 2003-2012.
- To ascertain the taxpayers attitude towards tax payment.
- To create a general awareness on the part of the public funds to demand for an account from their representatives.
- To recommend ways of providing the public sector accountability now and also in future.
- Research Hypothesis
In order to reflect on the relevant ideology needed in the research work, based on public sector accounting, the research work is enclosed on the following hypothesis. These are built into Null hypothesis, Ho and alternative hypothesis, Hi.
hypothesis 1
Ho: There is no positive relationship between the amount of tax paid and the benefit derived from the payment.
Hi: There is positive relationship between the amount of tax paid and the benefit derived from the payment.
Hypothesis 2
Ho: Improper management and accountability of public fund had not led to unemployment and uneven development among various states of Nigeria.
Hi: Improper management and accountability of public fund has led to unemployment and uneven development among various states of Nigeria.
Hypothesis 3
Ho: The public fund has not been wisely utilized towards maximizing their collective benefit in Nigeria.
Hi: The public fund has been wisely utilized towards maximizing their collective benefit derived from the payment.
- Significant Of The Study
The essences of public funds are the provision of social benefits to the people who contributed to it. It is therefore, important the public administrator should be given a clear account to what they did with public funds; if the aim of such administrator is o complete its tenure in the office. This is because people can resist tax payment, if they are not properly informed of what was done with their funds.
This study exposes the individual on his or her right to demand for an account from their trustees as their representatives. It also exposes the public administrator on how best to manage the taxpayers fund and achieve maximum support from the masses.
It will therefore, be useful o public administrators, account in the public sector tax administrators, the legislature and the executive arm of government as well as bankers. It will also enable the reader to know what has happened in the past, in terms of public sector accounting in Nigeria. This is a useful guide against the future Nigeria public administrators and politicians.
- Scope and Limitation of the Study
This study is aimed only at identifying the extent of accountability in Nigerian public sector for period of 2002-2012. The research work was however, hampered, by the following unavoidable constraints.
- Time: The battle of carrying out this research along with the semester academic work was enormous and tedious. The researcher could only manage any available time at her disposal that would not disturb her own academic works.
- Resource Constraint: The financial need of the research work is also enormous. The fact the researcher is prone to only a paltry fixed a salary at the end of every month were daily bread, is met has actually limited the research work because of the cost of data collection.
- Respondents: The information used was based on that provided by top civil servants that are seen as actual participants in the keeping and disbursement of public funds.
- Location Constraint: The research was based on information provided by civil servants serving in Enugu state; even though the research work was a survey of the center Nigeria situation.
- Definition Of Terms
The terms in the research work are drawn mostly from the disciplines namely: – the accounting discipline and the public administration. Some of the terms are: –
- Fund Accounting: – This is an accounting system that recognizes various indigent fund centers in the public sector and with independents reporting system.
- Entity Accounting: – This is the type of accounting system that looks at the whole organization different departments.
- Cost Center: – This is part of the organization that is charged with cost s of the purpose of ascertainment, report and control for the organization. It could be manned by a person or may be impersonal in the form of say machinery. It essentially involves sub-dividing the organizations with various responsibility centers, so that a person is given authority for the control of fixed overheads mean to be controlled.
- The Legislature: – This is the aspect of the public sector that is concerned with law making. This aspect of law making includes finance and other laws.
- Accounting Concepts and Conventions: – These are underlying assumptions upon which the accounting profession rests. They are divided into: –
- Business entity concept
- Money measurement concept
- Cost concept
- Going concern concept
- Dual aspect concept
- Accrual concept
- Realization concept
Business entity concept requires that accounting information should be kept in such a way that business is recognized as a separate legal entity, different from its owner.
Money measurement concept requires that the transactions and assets of the business should be expressed in monetary terms at all times.
Cost concept entails that the resources of the business acquired are known as the assets and forms the loan for subsequent period. The value recorded, as the balances of asset do not necessarily reflect in the current market value. The income of the business is measured by taking the value at data of sale and then deducting cost used in making or buying them.
Going concern concept, states that all business looks at the entire business as a continues process on liquidation a different approach becomes necessary.
Dual aspect concept states that all business transactions have a dual aspect. The account record changes in the state of business. The balance sheet in a statement of the position of business that records the sources and uses of funds in its statements. Every account has two effect on showing value received and the other given. It therefore normally has two entries in the ledger a debit entry and a credit entry.
Accrual concept entails that income accrues to the business, the moment that there is a sale. It is normal to measure the operation of the business on annual basis. This period may be broken down into interim periods as may be required by the management. Expenses are deducted as far as they are incurred in order to earn the revenue under consideration.
Realization concept states that revenue is deemed to have been earned the day t is realized and this is when goods are for immediately or in the future.
REFERENCES
Achua, .J K. (2009) . Reinventing Government Accounting
Nigeria, Nigeria Research Journals of Accounting 1 (1): 1-16
Appah, E and Appiah, K. Z. A. (2010). Fraud and
Development of sound Financial Institute in Nigeria, Nigeria, Nigeria Journals for Development Research, 1(1): 49-56
Okwoli , A. A. (2004). Towards Probity, Accountability and
Transparency, in Revenue Generation in the Nigeria Journals for Development Research, 1(1):49-56
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