New Patriotic Party stalwart, Professor Mike Ocquaye has denied drawing double salary at the expense of the state and for which he must refund $69,767,04. A publication of The Enquirer of Monday, June 15, 2009 quoted an audit report that faulted the 2008 NPP presidential candidate contestant, noting in part that “…in addition to collecting his full salary and Foreign Service Allowance till 31 December, 2004 he continued to collect same (salary and allowances) from January 2005 till 31 October 2005,” long after he ceased to be High Commissioner. Mike Ocquaye served as Ghana’s High Commissioner to India from 2001 until December 2004 when he contested and won the Dome Kwabenya parliamentary seat as MP. The publication, still quoting the audit report, said the anomaly occurred because “Prof Mike Ocquaye insisted he was also the Head of Ghana Mission in New Delhi” even after his recall from post. But Prof Ocquaye in a sharp rebuttal on Citi FM said while he did not draw any salary from Ghana while he served as MP and later Minister, he continued to receive same salary as he received as a High Commissioner because he was under the understanding that he was also the Head of Ghana’s Mission in New Delhi where he continued working in the interest of Ghana, until his attention was drawn to the conflict per a query by the Auditor at the Ghana Mission. After that, he said, he directed that the monies be paid back to state coffers until the misunderstanding was resolved. “I did not draw any salary in Ghana during that period so the matter of double pay does not come in. I did not draw salary as MP or as Minister. “I had a lot of work to do in India; I had not lost post, there is a formal way in which an ambassador leaves post…In fact during this period, 6th March, 2005, I was in India taking salute for Ghana.”