As the nation battling with the issue of fighting corruption, the revelations by the Auditor -General on the Accounts of District Assemblies for the Financial year ended 31^st December 2013 in Central Region Districts assemblies are so alarming and disheartening. Central Region is ranked the third poorest region in Ghana.

Contrary to Regulation 39(2) of Ghana’s Financial Administration Regulation 2004 and Part IX Section 7, 10 and 13 of the Financial Memoranda which mandates institutions to ensure prudent spending and proper accountability for payments, the Auditors have revealed that six assemblies failed to support payments for goods and services totaling GHc 191,338.30, with supporting documents such as invoices, memos, waybills etc. Again, according to the report “three Assemblies also recorded a total payment of GHc 30,598.82 on 16 payment transactions in their cash books without payment vouchers and supporting document”.

Below are the Assemblies:

No.	Assembly	Unsupported payments (Ghc)	PVs not presented No. PVs        Amount (Ghc)
1	Abura Asebu Kwamankese	1,800.00	1	7,000.00
2	Awutu Senya East	77,012.00
3	Gomoa East	10,122.50
4	Gomoa West	46,542.00
5	Mfantsiman Municipal		8	9,343.82
6	Twifo Atti Morkwa	48567.80	7	14,255.00
7	Twifo Hemang Lower	7,294.00
	Total	191,333.30		30,598.82

In the same report, “the Coordinating Directors and Financial Officers of six Assemblies delayed in the deletion of names of separated staff from the Government payroll at CAGD and also failed to stop their payment of unearned salaries amounting to Ghc 28,868.75 

No.	Assembly	Amount (GHc)
1	Gomoa West	3,241.62
2	Abura Asebu Kwamankese	1,193.31
3	Ajumako Enyan Essiam	1,992.45
4	Twifo Atti Morkwa	1,476.12
5	Agona East	14,707.25
6	Asikuma Odoben Brakwa	6,258.00
	Total	28,868.75

There was payment vouchers not pre-audited which amounted to Ghc 360,726.78 by three assemblies contrary Part XIII Section 5 of the Financial Memoranda. The assemblies were Awutu Senya District (Ghc 301,562.85), Cape Coast Metropolitan (Ghc16, 619.13) and Efutu Municipal (Ghc 42,544.80).

Efutu Municipal (Ghc 69,466.89), Agona East District (Ghc 4,380.39) and Cape Coast Metropolitan (Ghc 5,627.80) Assemblies were unable to provide any log books to support Ghc 79,475.08 worth of fuel allegedly purchased and used by the Assembly vehicles. Credit: Report of the Auditor -General on the Accounts of District Assemblies for the Financial year ended 31December 2013

STUNNAD would like to see full implementation of the Auditor-General’s recommendations and make the culprits to face the full rigor of the law.

 

……Signed……

Chris Arthur, National President (also immediate past TESCON-KNUST President-0541173031)

Jocelyn Quagraine Amoah (Data Analysis Director)