Auditor General’s Report Must Be Investigated

Corruption Watch Ghana, an anti-graft initiative has petitioned the Ministry of Finance to take immediate steps to ensure persons indicted in the 2016 Auditor General’s Report are investigated and punished.

A letter signed and issued by the Project Manager, Kojo Pumpuni Asante, urged the Finance Ministry and all relevant institutions to pursue all possible offences and cases of fraud committed by public servants and private individuals or companies cited in the report.

Their request comes on the back of the report that a colossal amount of GH¢5.4 billion was disallowed by the Auditor General within the year under review for reasons including the absence of relevant documents, goods not supplied, claims already paid for, among others.

Corruption Watch Ghana, in the statement, bemoaned the fact that the law is not enforced to punish officials indicted in such reports, to serve as a deterrent to the others.

The amount, according to the group, raises serious questions, not only about public financial management practices, but also about the scale of possible financial malfeasance.

They have therefore appealed to the Ministry of Finance to take immediate action.

“Corruption Watch is appealing to your esteemed office, as the institution charged with the responsibility of overseeing the public finances of Ghana under Act 921, to take immediate action by exercising your powers under sections 96, 97 and 98 of the Act to fully implement the recommendations stated in the report to punish all those who have breached the law and ensure these systemic failures do not occur again.,” the statement mentioned.

The group opined that the prosecution of offenders will act as a deterrent to others who may want to engage in such fraudulent acts in the future.

By: Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum/ [email protected]