The Commission of Audit carried out an audit on the managing and supervisory system of punctuality and attendance of Macao public administrative staffs between the end of year 2000 and the beginning of year 2001. The audit is broad in scope and covers 62 public departments of the Macao Special Administrative Region.

Major findings of the Commission of Audit during the course of the audit are as follows:

1. Although there is no obligatory guideline, 58% public departments have compiled internal written instructions adaptive to their specific operations with listing of implementation details on rules of punctuality and attendance for the staffs in accordance with the General Provisions for Macao Public Administrative Staffs;

2. 16% departments do not carry out supervision on the working hours of the staffs in accordance with Article 79 of the General Provisions for Macao Public administrative staffs;

3. Many departments do not carried out strict supervision on fulfilment of obligatory weekly working hours of the staffs. Based on the public expenditure in year 1999 for basic salaries of the public administrative staffs, it is calculated that the total expenditure of more than 17,000 civil servants per minute is approximately MOP 29,100. If each civil servant works one minute less each month, the implication is a waste worth approximately MOP 349,200 for all civil servants as a whole for a year;

4. Many departments have no strict regulation on the staffs to make necessary written explanations on their lateness or absence;

5. Many departments still lack systematic supervision on the work of field staffs and it is difficult to evaluate the efficiency and benefits of their work;

6. Not all departments strictly regulate the approval and confirmation procedures for overtimes;

7. Only 30% public departments use electronic instruments as auxiliary tools to record the working hours of staffs.

Based on the abovementioned findings, the Commission of Audit has mainly raised the following suggestions:

1. Each department shall make clear written internal guidelines or working rules in accordance with the relevant norms of the General Provisions for Macao public administrative staffs and the actual circumstances of the department, and shall formally notify all staffs of the guidelines or working rules and enable the staffs to consult them at any time. It shall be ensured that all staffs have a clear understanding of their own rights and obligations;

2. All staffs shall impartially execute the standards of administrative systems and strictly implement all established rules so as to ensure the effective operation of the supervisory and administrative system;

3. The electronic instruments connected with the information system shall be broadly promoted to act as the auxiliary tools of the records so as to ensure that supervisory work is effective, efficient and economical.