Financial Times - Corp. chiefs must channel requests thro’ Secretaries

Corp. chiefs must channel requests thro’ Secretaries

Treasury Secretary P.B. Jayasundera is cracking the whip over chairmen of state agencies and corporations who bypass the secretary of a ministry and directly seek approval from the ministry or cabinet of ministers on various issues.

“It is very important that the Chairman/Board of Directors of public enterprises should have prior approval of the Secretary to the relevant ministry before taking such decisions or seeking such approval,” he said in a recent circular to secretaries to ministries and heads of state agencies stressing the need for financial discipline and good governance.

Many powerfully-connected heads of public enterprises, who wield power by virtue of their political affiliations, ignore the ministry secretary and go to the minister concerned when seeking extra funds or in special appointments of cronies.

The Treasury circular also spoke of instances where some non-executive chairmen/directors have exercised executive powers overstepping the limits of their authority resulting in a violation of financial discipline and accountability.

Dr Jayasundera also said that some directors were enjoying benefits and perks which they were not entitled to, requesting the respective heads to ensure this doesn’t happen.

Back to Business