Read the text below in order to answer questions 29
and 30:
Responsibility of Accountants and Auditors
How can accountants and auditors help in this
anticorruption drive? First of all, accountants are the
first set of gatekeepers to ensure that transactions are
valid, at arm's-length, captured, and properly
recorded according to established standards.
Secondly, "as professionals with a duty to protect the
public interest, they are bound by rigorous codes of
professional and personal ethics calling for the
highest levels of integrity and objectivity". Thirdly,
"their key strategic positions within an enterprise or
organization - whether in an internal position or as an
external auditor or adviser - mean that they very
often have access to highly privileged and confidential
information."(Frank Harding: "Corruption: Rising to the
Challenge", IFAC - May/1999.)
Both accountants and auditors perform their
respective functions on the bases of national and
international standards of practice which have clear
guidelines in identifying, for instance, indicators of
fraud and other irregularities, and reporting these to
the highest levels of authority.
Internet: www.guyanajournal.com
Accessed in Nov/2003
According to the author, integrity and objectivity are