The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has expressed its dissatisfaction in what it described as a deliberate attempt by the government to shield service providers under the Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Agency (GYEEDA).
The Committee says the government has failed to produce the service providers for questioning with regards to some alleged misappropriation of funds at the agency.
The audited report of 2013 disclosed some misappropriation of funds at the agency in 2012. It also came to light that some of the service providers have been given money for services they have not executed.
As a result, a Joy News revelation in April 2014 over the alleged fraudulent manner with which some of the contracts were awarded resulted in the termination of all the service contracts between the agency and its service providers, except the sanitation module.
An engagement of the service providers by the Attorney-General (A-G) led to the reimbursement of millions of cedis they earned from the agency for doing nothing. However, others have failed to repay the money arguing they fulfilled their part of the bargain.
At its sitting on May 16 to continued its work on the Audited report for 2012, 2013 and 2014, PAC registered its frustration before the Employment and Labor Minister, Haruna Iddrisu for failing to come along with the providers.
The Minister, however, disclosed he failed to produce the service providers because “I thought that once it was us acting as public officials engaging them, it was important that you got our clarity before we proceeded to that.”
Speaking to Joy News, Member of Parliament (MP) for Atwima/Mponua, Isaac Asiamah said it is unhealthy for the government to engage in ‘hide and seek’ game with the Committee considering the delicate nature of the issue at hand.
“Why are they reluctant to bring these service providers?” he asked adding the companies must be made to refund the money paid them.
He said about ten companies have been cited in the misappropriation of GYEEDA funds, yet none of them has been produced before the Committee.
He charged the government to produce the service producers such as the Ghana Young Artisans Movement and Seywaa Engineering Works before the Committee for “Ghanaians to see that these are the people who created and looted our funds.”
According to him, when companies that cause some financial loss to the country are held to account, it will compel others “to be serious, [and] they will not take State money [thinking they will] go scot free.”
In a related development, Parliament resumed sitting on May 16 following its brief break.
It is expected to consider 29 bills including the presidential transition amendment bill and an amendment to the 1992 Constitution to hold the elections in November 2016
No comments:
Post a Comment