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Audit reports are final, Parliament does not need to conduct public hearings on findings – Dr. Kojo Asante

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Dr. Kojo Asante

The Director of Advocacy at the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Dr. Emmanuel Kojo Asante, says there is so much more Parliament could be doing in contributing to the accountability architecture in Ghana instead of conducting hearings based on the Auditor-General’s report.

According to him, it is rather counter-productive for the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament to be holding hearings to somewhat determine the guilt of institutions fingered for audit infractions when the Audit report is by itself final.

He stated that what Parliament should be doing is playing a monitoring and supervisory role ensuring that all infractions cited in the Audit Service document are settled and that the Auditor General is indeed performing his duties as mandated.

Speaking on PM Express, he said, “An audit is final, it’s determined. You can go and contest it in court when surcharges are issued against you, but what Parliament does is not to reopen the audit and determine whether the finding is fact or fiction which is what people are creating.

“Rather, when you look at the Auditor General’s report on general government, they raise questions about even matching the revenue figures from GRA as against what is in the MDAs, and there are serious variations. When they start to look at just the balance sheet, you know, the statement of accounts, there are variations.

“So Parliament is the one that at a strategic level has to be looking at this and saying ‘no, the next time we get the report, this has to be fixed because if you cannot even match your revenue, how can you be sure that what you’re collecting is what is being reported?’”

He has thus called on Parliament to put pressure on these state institutions by either cutting or blocking their budget approvals till such a time when they demonstrate a willingness to improve.

“So when I look at those reports, I’m like there’s so much Parliament could do and not whether somebody has spent 100 cedis or 2,000 cedis and there’s going to be a hearing.

“There are even more serious fundamental public management distortions in this our account that they should be insisting that ‘Ministry of Finance if we don’t see any improvement we’re not going to approve appropriations for these entities. Then there is some incentive for the public office to get our funds properly corrected,” he said.

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We will pursue everyone who has misused state monies – Mahama

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Speaking on Tuesday, April 16, as part of his "Building the Ghana We Want" trip in the North East Region, he emphasised the necessity of accountability and openness in governance, stating that anybody found guilty of misappropriating monies will face repercussions. The previous president promised to empower investigative and anti-corruption authorities to function properly throughout his term. He hopes to eliminate corruption and maintain Ghana's rule of law by enabling these authorities to carry out their tasks without interference. Mr Mahama encouraged Ghana's young to be positive and asked them to vote for the NDC in the 2024 elections, promising a brighter future under his leadership.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, has issued a strong warning to existing government appointees implicated in the misuse of public monies.

He stated unequivocally that anyone guilty of such activities would be held accountable for the harm done to the nation if elected in future elections.

Mr. Mahama emphasised that his objective is not to conduct a witch hunt, but rather to guarantee that state resources are used for their proper purposes, therefore benefiting the Ghanaian people.

Speaking on Tuesday, April 16, as part of his “Building the Ghana We Want” trip in the North East Region, he emphasised the necessity of accountability and openness in governance, stating that anybody found guilty of misappropriating monies will face repercussions.

The previous president promised to empower investigative and anti-corruption authorities to function properly throughout his term. He hopes to eliminate corruption and maintain Ghana’s rule of law by enabling these authorities to carry out their tasks without interference.

Mr Mahama encouraged Ghana’s young to be positive and asked them to vote for the NDC in the 2024 elections, promising a brighter future under his leadership.

He stressed the need for joint work in creating a wealthy and fair society, underlining the role of youth in moulding the country’s future.

“I can assure them that the people of Ghana will hold them accountable for their actions.” We are not intending to witch-hunt anyone, but if you have harmed the people of Ghana and misused their money, you must account for it. So investigative and corruption institutions will operate, and the young of our nation must acknowledge the harm done to them,” he stated.

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Oppong Nkrumah blames the minority for Komenda Sugar Factory delay

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He made this statement during a recent trip to the area to evaluate the coastal defence project. However, some Komenda residents are dissatisfied with Kojo Oppong Nkrumah's request to the Traditional Council to work with the Minority to offer tax breaks. According to them, the chiefs and people have already purchased property to produce sugarcane to feed the factory, which would provide work for the locals. They resisted importing semi-refined sugar for the facility. They have threatened to vote against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) if President Akufo-Addo fails to operationalize the factory despite multiple pledges made to the people.

The Minister for Works and Housing, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has blamed the Minority in Parliament for impeding the Komenda Sugar Factory’s operationalization.

According to him, the Minority is resisting the government’s efforts to obtain tax breaks for firms importing semi-refined sugar into the nation in order to jumpstart the sugar mill.

He has asked the Komenda Traditional Council to work with the Minority to provide the tax waiver and begin operations at the facility.

He made this statement during a recent trip to the area to evaluate the coastal defence project.

However, some Komenda residents are dissatisfied with Kojo Oppong Nkrumah’s request to the Traditional Council to work with the Minority to offer tax breaks.

According to them, the chiefs and people had already purchased property to produce sugarcane to feed the factory, which would provide work for the locals.

They resisted importing semi-refined sugar for the facility.

They have threatened to vote against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) if President Akufo-Addo fails to operationalize the factory despite multiple pledges made to the people.

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Abu Sakara explains what led to his union with Alan Kyerematen

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Dr. Sakara stated in an interview with JoyNews' AM Show on Wednesday, April 10, that their partnership transcends personal interests and is entirely dedicated to helping the nation. He stated that their partnership is intended to allow the participation of independent-minded individuals to the country's growth, regardless of political allegiance.

Dr. Abu Sakara Foster, the founder of the National Interest Movement (NIM), has explained the rationale for his partnership with Alan Kyerematen, the founder of the Movement for Change (M4C).

He highlighted that their collaboration is motivated by a shared ambition for the growth of the country.

According to Dr. Sakara, their goal is to implement creative policies that would solve the obstacles impeding the country’s reform plan.

Dr Sakara stated in an interview with JoyNews’ AM Show on Wednesday, April 10, that their partnership transcends personal interests and is entirely dedicated to helping the nation.

He stated that their partnership is intended to allow the participation of independent-minded individuals in the country’s growth, regardless of political allegiance.

“The desire to think outside the box led us to a union of minds and then we said why don’t we create some kind of electoral alliance that will address this but for a change, it is not about you and me but we need to put together a framework and a key understanding that will allow other people to join because then they know that it is not about us,” he said.

When asked who initiated their partnership, he answered that Mr. Kyerematen contacted him.

Dr Sakara explained that this approach took place before Mr. Kyerematen’s loss in the NPP presidential primary.

“Well, I think he approached me first. I know him but I don’t know him that much. He approached me from the point of view of his transformation plan. He approached me not for political purposes but for the purpose of formulating a great transformation plan,” he added.

Independent presidential candidate Alan John Kyerematen announced a strategic alliance with the NIM founder on Thursday, April 4.

This signified the beginning of an alliance known as “The Alliance for Revolutionary Change (ARC)”

In a statement announcing the Alliance’s official debut on Wednesday, April 17, Mr. Kyerematen went into depth about the organization’s goals.

The ARC’s main objective is to bring together Ghanaians from different backgrounds, with an emphasis on women and youth in particular, with the ultimate goal of selecting Ghana’s first independent candidate to be president.

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