BY THEMBA ZWANE
LOBAMBA – The Ministry of Finance informed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS) must explain why E20 million instead of E9.4 million requested appropriation budget was released by the portfolio.
The corrections department is under the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and appeared before the committee on May 22, 2026 to answer on irregularities flagged by the Auditor General (AG).
“I would also like clarification from the Auditor General regarding the appropriation budget for travel, transport, and communications. If the approved appropriation was E9.4 million, why was E20 million eventually released? Does the Ministry of Finance formulate and release budgets independently? These discrepancies are confusing and raise concerns about compliance with the law,” asked the PAC chairperson.
Appropriation Budget
He further wanted to know what informed the release of E20 million when the appropriation budget stood at E9.4 million.
In response, the representative from the Ministry of Finance stated that His Majesty’s Correctional Services should first provide an explanation before blame is directed at the Ministry.
He further explained that a sectorial officer works closely with the department on all budget-related matters, and that the Ministry and the department engage continuously throughout the budgeting process. However, there are instances where it appears that the Ministry releases lower funds while departments fail to adequately explain the discussions and agreements reached with the Ministry.
Travel, Transport and Communication
Further, the committee, through the representative from the office of the Auditor General noted that on paragraph 382 there were concerns on the under-expenditure on travel, transport, and communications amounting to E8.9 million.
“We were informed that the under-expenditure arose because the allocated funds were not fully utilised. However, this raises concerns regarding ineffective service delivery, as the activities for which the funds had been allocated were not fully carried out,” said the officer.
He said the committee requested the department to explain the budgeting process, as it remains the responsibility of the department to clearly determine the intended use of the budget before submission and approval, rather than informing the relevant authorities after the budget has already been allocated.
Service Delivery Priorities
“Budget estimates must be informed by the department’s planned activities and service delivery priorities. We also note that the approved budget was lower than the actual funds released, which suggests weaknesses in the budget formulation process.”
With regard to the CTA funds, they said the situation remains unclear. The department is fully aware of its duties and responsibilities, and therefore must account for the under-expenditure and take corrective measures to prevent a recurrence.
Furthermore, the department was told it should review expenditure trends from the current financial year in order to make more realistic projections for the next financial year.
CTA Charges
On the issue of CTA charges, they said the over-expenditure has escalated, while at the same time the committee remains concerned about the 36% under-expenditure recorded.
The Controlling Officer indicated that measures are being put in place to address the matter and correct what was described as an oversight in previous years.
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