Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at the Presidency, Dr. Tony Aidoo has said Ghana must set up a public enquiry to deal with the spiraling judgment debts. Dr. Aidoo who joined Joy News’ current affairs program pm: EXPRESS Thursday said the discussion on judgment debts have been so politicized, the real issues have been muffled. Judgment debts have rocked the nation so bad it is on record that government has paid over 600 million Ghana cedis between 2009 and 2012. An issue of national import, discussants on the program said the discussion must be taken out of the political arena to the public space focusing on how to properly manage state resources. Dr. Aidoo was of the opinion that an independent public enquiry will be able to identify the root cause of these increasing judgment debts, the impact on the country and how to deal with it when it gets to the court. He said most of the judgment debt cases have arisen from misconduct and general indiscipline. “We must formulate a policy to deal with management of state resources especially when gross dereliction of duty and illegal abrogation of contracts lead to indebtedness on the part of government”. Contributing on the show, Mike Ocquaye Jnr concurred a public enquiry will do the nation good in dealing with the issue but added that the situation where government procedures and processes are ignored, is what has brought the country so many judgment debts. Citing the Isofoton case as an example, he said government had gone ahead to contract experts to review the case and advice it. Unfortunately before the legal team could make their recommendation which was for government to head to court and battle the case, government had already decided to pay the money. “This is a team of experts put together and paid 520,000 Euros. When the report came, the experts said we should not pay the money. So even with the Isofoton, the government experts, the government consultants advised the government not to pay the money. Go to court because there is no breach and yet the government did not go to court and settled” he said. Mike Ocquaye Jnr fumed “on what advice, on what opinion did the government still pay the money to Isofoton?” He challenged why the Ministry of Energy would mention Kwadwo Mpiani, Joe Ghartey and Professor Mike Oquye as liable, saying it is a mischief to dilute the irresponsibility starring the government in the face. “Why waste 520,000 euro of taxpayers’ money for legal opinion that is not used?” He asked. Mike Ocquaye’s opinion is that, Deputy Information Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa must be questioned on why he pushed for the Isofoton debt to be paid. “It appears some state officials, civil servants are trying to use judgment debts to make money” he added. The law is not definite on judgment debt he said, but once a case against government has gone to court and the government has legitimately lost, the state has no choice but to pay the awarded money.