2012-05-22
National Audit Office recommends improving regulations of activities of institutions accountable to the Seimas
Likely inadequate control of activities of cultural institutions accountable to the Seimas, overlap of their functions with other similar public administration institutions, identified by the National Audit Office of Lithuania (NAOL) during a preliminary study, as well as debates about the efficiency and added value created through activities of the institutions led the NAOL to the public audit of the said institutions.
Upon the evaluation of the performance, the assumptions of the preliminary study were proven. We have established that the control of activities of the cultural institutions is insufficient, the rules for appointment of heads of these institutions differ, the status and accountability of the institutions vary”, stated Auditor General Giedrė Švedienė after summarizing the audit results.
Currently, 24 institutions are accountable to the Seimas, 7 thereof – the Genocide and Resistance Research Centre of Lithuania, the Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania, the Press, Radio and Television Support Fund, the State Language Inspectorate, the Council for the Protection of Ethnic Culture and the Office of the Inspector Journalist Ethics, are related to the administration spheres assigned to the Minister of Culture.
The audit has shown that the criteria for establishing institutions accountable to the Seimas have not been forseen, and that accountability to the Seimas and performance control thereof are underregulated. The Seimas should establish institutions which assist in implementing the functions of the Seimas, however, in the founding legislation of certain audited institutions their link with the Seimas was not indicated, except for the obligation to provide an annual report. Without the criteria for establishing institutions accountable to the Seimas, those institutions were being established without having done an adequate evaluation of the need and purpose of such an institution, whether ad hoc or permanent.
Performance control is not always adequately ensured due to insufficiently organized accountability. The Seimas lacks adequate legal levers that can influence or take decisions on activities and control of some institutions.
The auditors also determined that a part of functions exercised in a cultural sphere by the institutions accountable to the Seimas overlap with other functions exercised in a cultural sphere by the public administration institutions; a part of them are more common to the functions exercised by the executive authorities and shall not be related to the powers designated to the Seimas by the Constitution.
According to that the state recourses may be used rather ineffectively. Ineffective use of funds may be caused by the lowered amounts of functions executed by these institutions.
The audited institutions have a different legal status, 5 thereof are the budgetary institutions, the Press, Radio and Television Support Fund acts according to the Law on Public Establishments, the Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania has no legal status at present.
The Chairman of the Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania is elected by the majority of votes of the members of the Commission, meanwhile the Head of the Press, Radio and Television Support Fund – by the general shareholders meeting. This violates a constitutional provision stating that the Heads of the state institutions established by the Parliament shall be appointed and/or dismissed by the Seimas.
69 million litas were allocated for administration of seven institutions of the cultural sphere accountable to the Seimas.
Audit report “Activities of cultural institutions accountable to the Seimas” is available in Lithuanian on the website of the National Audit Office