Huge amounts paid as judgment debt

Mr Albert Kan-Dapaah, a Consulting Director at the Centre of Public Accountability of the University of Professional Studies, on Friday said GH?217, 971,388.00 had been paid as judgment debt in 2011.

He said, “Financial irregularities have become an annual ritual because of lack of monitoring and supervision and non-adherence to financial laws and regulations in the country”.

Mr Dapaah said this in Tamale during a sensitization workshop on the findings and recommendations of the Auditor General’s Public Accounts of the country from 2009 to 2011.

The event, which was organised by SEND-GHANA in collaboration with the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), was to educate and sensitize participants on the results of the findings and recommendations identified by the Auditor General on the public accounts of the country between 2009 to 211.

It was also to build the capacity of selected Metropolitan Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) on the role of the Audit Report Implementation Committees (ARCs) and the mechanisms for the implementation of the recommendations of Audit reports as well as citizens’ role in ensuring good governance by demanding accountability at the local level.

Mr Dapaah urged the government to put in place a public sector financial management system to ensure the public funds were properly protected and managed.

Mr Vitus Azeem, Executive Director of GII, said his outfit had commissioned and produced a report dubbed: ‘Show me the Money’ which looked at the guides in the Auditor General’s reports over three years and actions taken on these reports as part of the activities under the project.

He said the GII would facilitate activities in the Greater Accra, Ashanti and the Northern regions with Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as participants especially those from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Ministry of Education (MoE), Interior, Health and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Mr Azeem said GII had implemented several activities, which specifically aimed at helping to improve transparency, accountability and to promote good governance in Ghana.

The GII, a local chapter of Transparency International (TI) with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is implementing a project aimed at consolidating transparency and accountability in Ghana.

Mr Azeem also launched a book titled: “Show me the money” as part of the programme.