Audio By Carbonatix
Officials of the Ghana Health Service have been forced to withdraw a letter protesting the findings of the 2015 Auditor General's Report which made adverse findings against the service.
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee Thursday, the officials, led by the Director General of the Service Dr Anthony Nsia Asare, insisted they did nothing wrong in the auction of the nine vehicles to staff of the service.
The Auditor General in its 2015 findings said it was irregular for the nine vehicles to have been sold to the staff of the service when the auction was supposed to have been done for the general public.
But Dr Nsia Asare and his men contested the findings. They came to the committee with a letter dismissing the findings and insisting they did nothing wrong in the auctioning of the said vehicles.
The Chairman of the Committee James Klutse Avedzi read contents of the rebuttal by the officials of the Health Service after which he engaged the Director General in a feisty banter over the propriety of selling the vehicles to members of staff.
In the face of the presidential directive for public servants not to buy state vehicles, Avedzi questioned why officials of the Health Service will mount a defence for the buying of state cars by officials of the Health Service.
But Dr Nsia Asare insisted the cars auctioned were not in the same category as the ones sold to ministers and other government appointees.
According to him, the nine cars were not serviceable but added due process was followed in the auction process.
He explained auction was advertised in the newspapers and brought evidence of the announcement.
But Joy News' Parliamentary Correspondent Joseph Opoku Gakpo reported that Dr Anthony Nsia Asare was made to withdraw the letter after members of the Appointment Committee pointed to several breaches by the officials of the Ghana Health Service.
By law and procedure, proceeds of the auction were supposed to have been paid into a non-tax revenue account of the Bank of Ghana a day after the auction had been done.
However, officials of the Ghana Health Service were deemed to have made payment of the said proceeds in April 24, 2017 more than four years after the auction.
The auction was done in 2013.
According to Opoku Gakpo these facts were pointed out to Dr Nsia Asare after which he was made to withdraw the letter.
Latest Stories
-
Mahama accepts Sophia Akuffo’s resignation; replacement process underway – Gov’t
4 minutes -
Motorcyclist killed in multi-vehicle crash on Cape Coast–Takoradi Highway
18 minutes -
Canada visa denial for Thomas Partey exposes legal fractures of multi-host FIFA World Cup
20 minutes -
FIFA seeks explanation over VAR official’s hand gesture
27 minutes -
US and Iran agree to pause hostilities but key questions remain
27 minutes -
Mahama receives ambassadors from Russia, Poland, Indonesia and five other countries
30 minutes -
Legal Green Association backs transitional directives under new Legal Education Act
31 minutes -
Mahama urges stronger Ghana-Russia relations as new Ambassador presents credentials
34 minutes -
President Mahama welcomes Russian envoy to Ghana, calls for stronger Ghana–Russia cooperation
39 minutes -
Elevate Africa opens applications for Threads of Africa 2026 to revive endangered textiles through fashion film
40 minutes -
Wellbeing, work, and performance: Rethinking productivity in African organisations
43 minutes -
Telecel Ashanti Codes to train 1,000 regional students in digital skills
55 minutes -
Rethinking tax at market entry: key considerations for businesses entering Ghana
1 hour -
Free MRI scans available at 37 Military Hospital as new diagnostic partnership takes effect
1 hour -
Over 50% of Barekese forest cover lost as reservoir capacity drops by 30% – GWL
1 hour