The Auditor General’s Office has revealed that a significant portion of allowances unlawfully paid to members of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) over a decade ago remains unpaid.

According to the Compliance Audit Report for 2023, released on April 22, members of the JSC received allowances in 2009 and 2010 without parliamentary approval. This included MVR 500 per JSC session and MVR 300 per committee meeting, totalling MVR 1.03 million in unauthorised payments.

The report stated that by the end of 2023, MVR 674,260 had yet to be recovered. Although the Anti-Corruption Commission ordered a halt to these payments in 2011, a large portion of the funds remains outstanding.

The audit also noted that the JSC has been attempting to recover the money over the past two years and that some individuals have begun repaying the amounts after receiving formal instructions to do so.

Despite the outstanding allowances, the Auditor General confirmed that the JSC's spending in 2023 was in line with its authorised budget.