Auditing the auditors: A performative ‘spectacle’ of public oversight
Auditing the auditors: A performative ‘spectacle’ of public oversight
Purpose: This paper analyses the establishment and evolution of a public oversight body (POB) – the Egyptian Audit Oversight Unit (AOU) – and its implications for local auditing firms and practices. Design/methodology/approach: Primary data were gathered from 34 semi-structured interviews (including follow-up ones) between 2014 and 2020. Secondary data was obtained through publicly available documents and internal memos. Drawing on Debord's (1967) Society of the Spectacle, the insights focus on the POB's conception, materialisation and evolution in a context characterised by weak regulatory structures. Findings: Through a series of acts, the findings reveal how the AOU first accepted the image of “international best practice” oversight (the “metaphorical”), followed by the construction of the local structure and décor replicating a United States (US) style POB archetype (the “transformational”) by primarily relying on visible processes/procedures. Yet, these mechanisms emphasised the spectacular nature of oversight, with little improvement for practice and limiting itself to “cracking down” on smaller local firms. A final stage (the “performative”) reveals how the AOU seeks to expand its activities beyond its original mandate without challenging the image-driven nature of its oversight. Originality/value: The paper offers two key contributions. First, it reveals how actors, through a combination of symbolic and tangible measures, create a new performative reality of public oversight. Second, it advocates Debord's “spectacle” to complement other theoretical lenses, with a view to illuminating the materialisation stages that bridge the gap between proclaimed oversight policies and actual practices (including conscious and unconscious omissions) within a given political economy context.
Developing countries, Egypt, Auditing, Spectacle, Public Oversight Board, PCAOB Archetype, Public oversight board, Egypt, Developing countries, PCAOB archetype, Spectacle, Auditing
Marnet, Oliver
6840910e-2e26-4e63-aa84-76c5c8d27877
Ghattas, Peter Brince Mikhail
d24ab1ef-b046-4823-ab50-5a381e9ea53d
Soobaroyen, Teerooven
6686e2f8-564f-4f7f-b079-9dc8a2f53a48
Uddin, Shahzad
bcfb99b3-f724-4f44-a68e-48053d5cada8
Marnet, Oliver
6840910e-2e26-4e63-aa84-76c5c8d27877
Ghattas, Peter Brince Mikhail
d24ab1ef-b046-4823-ab50-5a381e9ea53d
Soobaroyen, Teerooven
6686e2f8-564f-4f7f-b079-9dc8a2f53a48
Uddin, Shahzad
bcfb99b3-f724-4f44-a68e-48053d5cada8
Marnet, Oliver, Ghattas, Peter Brince Mikhail, Soobaroyen, Teerooven and Uddin, Shahzad
(2023)
Auditing the auditors: A performative ‘spectacle’ of public oversight.
Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal.
(doi:10.1108/AAAJ-08-2022-5957).
(In Press)
Abstract
Purpose: This paper analyses the establishment and evolution of a public oversight body (POB) – the Egyptian Audit Oversight Unit (AOU) – and its implications for local auditing firms and practices. Design/methodology/approach: Primary data were gathered from 34 semi-structured interviews (including follow-up ones) between 2014 and 2020. Secondary data was obtained through publicly available documents and internal memos. Drawing on Debord's (1967) Society of the Spectacle, the insights focus on the POB's conception, materialisation and evolution in a context characterised by weak regulatory structures. Findings: Through a series of acts, the findings reveal how the AOU first accepted the image of “international best practice” oversight (the “metaphorical”), followed by the construction of the local structure and décor replicating a United States (US) style POB archetype (the “transformational”) by primarily relying on visible processes/procedures. Yet, these mechanisms emphasised the spectacular nature of oversight, with little improvement for practice and limiting itself to “cracking down” on smaller local firms. A final stage (the “performative”) reveals how the AOU seeks to expand its activities beyond its original mandate without challenging the image-driven nature of its oversight. Originality/value: The paper offers two key contributions. First, it reveals how actors, through a combination of symbolic and tangible measures, create a new performative reality of public oversight. Second, it advocates Debord's “spectacle” to complement other theoretical lenses, with a view to illuminating the materialisation stages that bridge the gap between proclaimed oversight policies and actual practices (including conscious and unconscious omissions) within a given political economy context.
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Accepted/In Press date: 29 June 2023
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Keywords:
Developing countries, Egypt, Auditing, Spectacle, Public Oversight Board, PCAOB Archetype, Public oversight board, Egypt, Developing countries, PCAOB archetype, Spectacle, Auditing
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 479568
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/479568
ISSN: 0951-3574
PURE UUID: 35695779-bf63-4a0f-ab8d-1bff9cbe693e
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Date deposited: 26 Jul 2023 16:38
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 03:15
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Contributors
Author:
Peter Brince Mikhail Ghattas
Author:
Teerooven Soobaroyen
Author:
Shahzad Uddin
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