Audit: Gulhi Council unable to verify outstanding land rent and fines owed by the end of 2023
2 އޯގަސްޓު 2026 | އާދީއްތަ 09:27An audit report has revealed that the Gulhi Island Council failed to maintain proper financial records for leased land, leaving the total outstanding revenue owed to the council as of the end of 2023 unverified. Consequently, the Auditor General’s Office has instructed the council to update its accounts in accordance with financial regulations and take immediate action to recover all unpaid rent and associated penalties.
K. Gulhi: The Auditor General’s Office has stated that the total amount of land rent and fines owed to the local council as of the end of 2023 remains unverified. | follow me to maldives
The Auditor General’s Office has stated that the total outstanding amount owed to the K. Gulhi Island Council for land rent and associated fines up to the end of 2023 could not be verified.
The 2023 compliance audit report for the K. Gulhi Island Council, released by the Auditor General’s Office, highlighted that under Section 5.24 (a) of the State Finance Regulations, payments due to state offices for services rendered, work completed, property rentals, or goods sold must be collected within a maximum of one month from the date of completion. The report further noted that the specific procedures for recovering such outstanding funds are detailed in Section 5.26 (a) of the same regulations.
However, the report highlighted that although the Gulhi Council Secretariat maintains an Excel spreadsheet titled "Land Rent Payment Detail Sheet" to track payments for leased land, the records are incomplete and fail to show the total outstanding balance of land rent due.
The Audit Office highlighted that records of lease payments for certain land plots failed to specify the actual dates on which the payments were made. Furthermore, the report noted that the records did not include the final deadlines for payments, making it impossible to determine the duration of any delays between the due dates and the actual dates of settlement.
Furthermore, the Auditor General’s Office stated that the total outstanding amount owed by lessees remains unclear, as the report failed to specify the fines accumulated due to payment delays alongside the base land rent.
Consequently, the Audit Office stated that the total outstanding balance owed to the council as of the end of 2023, regarding land lease payments and associated fines, could not be verified.
To rectify these issues, the Auditor General’s Office has instructed the council to ensure all relevant data is included in the Excel sheets used to track land rent and fines. The office further advised the council to exercise greater diligence regarding these records when processing payments.
The Audit Office has instructed the Council to update its records of outstanding dues in accordance with the Public Finance Regulations and to take the necessary steps to recover these funds. Furthermore, the Council was directed to ensure that all payments owed for services rendered, works completed, property rentals, or goods sold by a state office are collected within a maximum of one month from the date of completion, as stipulated by the regulations.
The Audit Office stated that, in accordance with the established regulations, state institutions have been instructed to collect all outstanding payments along with any applicable late fees or penalties incurred after the payment deadline.
