Registrar Mohammed Saneem.

New auditors hired by the National Federation Party withdrew their services on Monday.

The NFP was directed by the Registrar of Political Parties to find new auditors registered with the Fiji Institute of Accountants after it was discovered that the original firm was not registered to operate in Fiji.

Registrar Mohammed Saneem says NFP had to be given more time to find suitable auditors, and he now expects all parties to meet next week to go over the party’s accounts.

“I allowed time until today (25th Sept) to find another set of auditors which they have managed to do. I have already requested a meeting next Wednesday with the new auditors so the FEO team can sit down with them and convey our findings”

The National Federation Party has been given 21 days to rectify discrepancies found in its list of donations submitted to the Registrar of Political Parties.

These relate to accounts for 2015, 2017, and 2019 with the report from 2016 still pending.

Registrar of Political Parties Mohammed Saneem says NFP is in breach of the Political Parties Act and if the party is unable to rectify the discrepancies in time, it could face possible suspension.

Saneem explains the discrepancies found in the reports include, the failure to issue receipts, failure to declare and reconcile deposits in bank accounts, and failure to account for funds from fundraisers.

He says a breakdown of these issues has been given to the NFP to addressing before resubmitting the necessary disclosures, adding that these discrepancies are a matter of great concern.