The Inspectorate General of the Ministry of Communication and Digital is strengthening its internal budget oversight system by tightening the data validation process for every program and budget proposal.
According to Inspector III of the Inspectorate General of the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, Randy Arninto, this effort is part of the transformation of needs-based supervision with the principle of "No Data No Budget", which emphasizes that budget proposals can only be approved if supported by valid data and a clear needs analysis.
"Conventional oversight has so far focused on administrative audits, without addressing the substance of the data and program needs. Now, we're ensuring that every budget is tested for validity. The principle is simple: if the data is invalid, there's no budget," he said in Jakarta on Wednesday.
In the Socialization of Methods and Criteria for Monitoring Program and Budget Needs Analysis held at Puspa Komdigi, Jakarta, he explained that this policy can overcome systemic weaknesses in budget planning that often open up opportunities for deviations.
The Ministry of Communication and Digital's new budget oversight guidelines cover four main dimensions: the origin and feasibility of program and budget needs; technical, economic, and operational justification; cost reasonableness and quantification of needs; and risk management from the planning stage.
In an effort to strengthen the oversight mechanism, the Inspectorate General of the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs also developed a Continuous Audit and Continuous Monitoring (CACM) system.
This web-based system allows auditors to monitor budget changes or revisions in real-time and immediately follow up if any discrepancies are found.
"With CACM, we can immediately receive notifications when there are suspicious budget revisions. This prevents potential irregularities mid-process," said Randy.
