FORENSIC ACCOUNTING AS A TOOL FOR FRAUD DETECTION AND PREVENTION IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF SURULERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COUNCIL, LAGOS STATE)
ATTENTION:
BEFORE YOU READ THE CHAPTER ONE OF THE PROJECT TOPIC BELOW,
PLEASE READ THE INFORMATION BELOW.THANK YOU!
INFORMATION:
YOU CAN GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT OF THE TOPIC BELOW. THE FULL
PROJECT COSTS N5,000 ONLY. THE FULL INFORMATION ON HOW TO PAY AND GET THE
COMPLETE PROJECT IS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE. OR YOU CAN CALL: 08068231953,
08168759420
FORENSIC
ACCOUNTING AS A TOOL FOR FRAUD DETECTION AND PREVENTION IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY
OF SURULERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COUNCIL, LAGOS STATE)
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1. BACKGROUND OF THE
STUDY
The issue of fraud,
money laundering and other corrupt practices in business and government
organizations has necessitated the application and practice of forensic or
investigative accounting. Forensic or investigative accounting is that branch
of accounting that deals with recovering proceeds of fraud, money laundering
and other related corrupt practices that may occur in an organization. Once fraud
is perceived or detected, a professional set of people-the forensic accountants
are called upon to help detect the fraud and furnish management with
substantial evidence to be presented in the court of law, when prosecuting the
suspects involved in the fraud. ‘Forensic’ which means evidence or material(s)
to be used in court has been incorporated into accounting and finance as a
result of increase in white collar crimes (Mazunder, 2011). Mazunder also
remarked that law enforcement personnels in recent years have become more aware
of white collar crimes, but lacked expertise and training in combating such
crimes.
According to Zysman (2004), forensic
accounting utilizes accounting, auditing and investigative skills. Enyi (2012)
also asserted that it takes an accountant to catch a corrupt of fraudulent
accountant, as man is expected to know the trick of a monkey in order to catch
it. Strict ethical conducts must be applied by an auditor in-order to carry out
forensic accounting successfully. An auditor must be fully independent and must
be aware of the tricks of management staff and employees in perpetrating fraud
in an organization.
Joshi (2003) traced the
history of forensic accounting to Kutilya, the first economist to openly
recognize the need for the forensic accountants. The first form of forensic
accounting can be traced to an 1817 court decision. The phase ‘Forensic
Accounting’ was first coined by Puloubet in 1946. Publoubet was the first man
to publish in his book the phase ‘Forensic Accounting’.
Since Nigeria gained her independence in 1960,
forensic accounting has existed due to increase in fraud, money laundering and
other forms of economic and financial crimes in the country (Enyi, 2012). The
term ‘forensic accounting’ is not new in Nigeria as auditors, police and
intelligence units apply it every day in the discharge of their duties.
The growing demand for
forensic accounting is a known characteristic of most companies in the world.
Forensic accounting arises from the effect and cause of fraud and technical
error made by human. Forensic accounting is quite new in Nigeria as companies
have realized that the service of a forensic accountant is needed as fraud
cases have substantially increased in number. Forensic accounting is the
application of financial skills and investigative mentality to unsettled
issues, conducted within the context of the rules of evidence (Arokiasamy and
Cristal, 2009).
Bologna and Lindquistn
(1987) assert that forensic accounting as a discipline encompasses fraud
knowledge, financial expertise, and a sound knowledge and understanding of
business reality and the working of the legal system. Forensic accounting may
be one of the most effective and efficient way to decrease and check accounting
fraud. Presently, forensic accounting is gaining popularity worldwide. It is
been taught as a major course in many educational institutions in various
countries, Howard, and Sheetz, (2006).
It has been noted that “Government spending
has always been a big business, but it has become so massive today that the
public through its legislators is demanding to know whether the huge outlays of
money are being spent wisely or whether they should be spent at all.” Officials
and employees who manage public sector activities are by virtue of that duty,
required to render adequate accounts of their activities to the public (Ribadu,
2005).
The incidence of fraud
continues to increase across private and public sector organizations and across
nations. Fraud is a universal problem as no nations is immuned, although
developing countries and their various states suffer the most pain.
Forensic accounting is
said to bring significant improvement in the quality of fraud detection and
prevention. This study meant to help and remind the public sector organization
of Kogi State, in the affected ministries to design an integrated approach to
preventing and controlling fraud and corruption within the workplace through an
establish service of Professional Forensic Accountants.
1.2. STATEMENT OF THE
PROBLEM
Recently, series of
fraud have been committed both in the public sector and private sector of the
economy. These in no doubt are perpetrated under the supervision of the
internal auditors of the organization. It suffices to say that the independent
of the internal auditor is not guaranteed because he works as an employee of
the government or organization. Then come the idea of external auditors, yet
frauds are still being committed on a daily basis.
The above scenario indicated that as more and
more development both in the information Communication Technology (ICT) world
and other fields, so fraudsters continue to groom their own tactics towards
fraudulent practices.
It now become pertinent that forensic
accounting be introduced and practices since the external auditors do not or
may not have the required training to be able to tackle modern frauds like
white collar crimes such as security fraud, embezzlement, bankruptcies,
contract disputes and possibly criminal financial transaction; including money
laundering by organized criminals, also is the ability of the forensic
accountant to provide litigation support and investigative accounting. These
areas have become a complex area of concern for the accounting profession.
1.3. OBJECTIVES OF THE
STUDY
The objective of the
study is to find out the following:
To examine the role of
Forensic Accountant in an organization.
To examine the
possibility of reducing the occurrence of fraud cases using Forensic
Accounting.
To find out whether
Forensic Accountant can help in detecting and preventing fraud in the Public
Sector
To examine if there is
significance difference between Forensic Accountants and External Auditors.
1.4. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
What is the role of
Forensic Accountant play in an organization?
Is there any
possibility of reducing the occurrence of fraud cases using Forensic
Accounting?
Can Forensic Accountant
help in detecting and preventing fraud in the Public Sector?
Is there any
significance difference between Forensic Accountants and External Auditors?
1.5. RESEARCH
HYPOTHESES
HYPOTHESIS 1
H0:
Forensic Accountant does not play role in an organization.
H1:
Forensic Accountant plays a significant role in an organization
HYPOTHESIS 11
H0:
The uses of Forensic Accounting do not significantly reduce the
occurrence of Fraud cases in the public sector.
H1:
The uses of Forensic Accounting do significantly reduce the occurrence
of fraud cases in the public sector.
HYPOTHESIS 111
H0:
There is no significant difference between Professional Forensic
Accountants and Traditional External Auditor.
H1:
There is a significant difference between Professional Forensic
Accountants and Traditional External Auditor.
1.6. SIGNIFICANCE OF
THE STUDY
The study will aid in
laying a solid framework for the design and implementation of forensic
accounting practices in Nigeria. Since forensic accounting is still new in
developing countries such as Nigeria, this study will aid policy makers and
other stake holders to draft adequate policies to guide the practice of
forensic accounting in Nigeria.
The study will also serve as a guide to
student and independent researchers who may have interest in the subject
matter. Findings and recommendations from this study will serve as a guide in
carrying out other research studies in forensic accounting and fraud detection
in organizations.
1.7. SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The study concerns
about forensic accounting as a tool for fraud detection and prevention in Nigeria with a particular
reference to Eti Osa local government council, Lagos State.
1.8. LIMITATION OF THE
STUDY
The study limitation
was inability of management to divulge certain information which they consider
sensitive and fear of publication which might be detrimental to their
operation.
Distance and its attendant cost of travel in
order to obtain information which to write this study was also a major
limitation. Another limitation to the study is short time factor which did not
give time for thorough research work, hence gathering adequate information
becomes very difficult.
Finally, lack of materials on the topic. This
is new in the area of forensic accounting for detection and preventive of fraud
in Nigeria. Therefore, the researcher resolved to seek friendly approach in
order to obtain the needed materials or information from the organization under
study through the administration of questionnaire.
1.9. DEFINITION OF
TERMS AND ACRONYMS
FORENSIC ACCOUNTING:
According to Manning (2002) defined forensic accounting as the application of
financial accounting and investigative skills at a standard acceptable by the
courts, to address issues in dispute in the context of civil and criminal
litigation.
ACCOUNTING: This is
defined as the process of identifying, measuring, and communicating economic
information to permit informed judgements and decisions by users of the
information (Frank Wood & A. Sangster, 2005).
ACCOUNTING FRAUD:
Accounting fraud is an act of knowingly falsifying accounting records, such as
sales or cost records, in order to boost the net income or sales figures;
accounting fraud is illegal and subjects the company and the executives
involved to civil lawsuits (Arokiasamy and Cristal, 2009).
FRAUD: fraud is an act
or course of deception, deliberately practiced to gain unlawful or unfair
advantage; such deception directed to the detriment of another (Anyanwu, 1993).
DETECTIVE CONTROLS:
These controls are designed to detect and report the occurrence of an omission,
an error or a malicious act (Adeniji, A. 2004).
PREVENTIVE CONTROLS:
These are controls that predict potentials problems before they occur and make
adjustments (Adeniji, A. 2004).
CORPERATE FRAUD: These
are the activities undertaken by an individual or company that are done in an
dishonest or illegal manner, and are designed to give an advantage to the
perpetrating individual or company (Investopedia, 2015.
HOW TO GET THE FULL PROJECT WORK
PLEASE, print the following instructions and information if you
will like to order/buy our complete written material(s).
HOW TO RECEIVE PROJECT MATERIAL(S)
After paying the appropriate amount (#5,000) into our bank Account
below, send the following information to
08068231953 or 08168759420
(1) Your project topics
(2) Email Address
(3) Payment Name
(4) Teller Number
We will send your material(s) after we receive bank alert
BANK ACCOUNTS
Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI
Account Number: 0046579864
Bank: GTBank.
OR
Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI
Account Number: 2023350498
Bank: UBA.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL:
08068231953 or 08168759420
AFFILIATE LINKS:
myeasyproject.com.ng
easyprojectmaterials.com
easyprojectmaterials.net.ng
easyprojectsmaterials.net.ng
easyprojectsmaterial.net.ng
easyprojectmaterial.net.ng
projectmaterials.com.ng
googleprojectsng.blogspot.com
myprojectsng.blogspot.com.ng
https://projectmaterialsng.blogspot.com.ng/
Comments
Post a Comment