The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has referred the management of the E.P College of Education at Bimbila in the Northern Region to the Attorney-General’s Department for prosecution over financial irregularities involving more than GH¢1.3 million.
The action follows findings contained in the Auditor-General’s Report, which cited the college for making payments without providing the necessary supporting receipts to authenticate the transactions.
According to the Committee, the infractions relate to unsupported payments amounting to GH¢1,356,944.
The expenditures, it said, covered items such as foodstuffs, building materials for water projects, stationery for committee work and costs associated with an internal review exercise, among others, for which no valid documentation was presented.
“The infraction is unsupported payments to the tune of GH¢1,356,944. Management made payments to this amount but could not provide the relevant receipts to authenticate them,” the Committee stated.
It said the matter would be referred to the Attorney-General for further action, including possible prosecution and recovery of the funds.
The Committee emphasised that failure to provide supporting documents for such expenditures constitutes a breach of public financial management regulations and undermines transparency and accountability in the use of public funds.
In a related development, the Committee directed the Nanumba South District Assembly to refund an amount of GH¢19,772 spent on fuel without receipts within 30 days.
The PAC stressed that the amount must be refunded personally by the officers responsible and not from the Assembly’s Internally Generated Funds (IGF).
The directives were issued during the Committee’s four-day zonal public hearings held in Tamale to consider the 2024 Auditor-General’s Report on the management and utilisation of statutory funds.
The report covered District Assemblies Common Fund, public universities, colleges of education and other statutory institutions across the Northern, North East, Savannah, Upper East and Upper West regions.
It also examined the accounts of District Assemblies’ Internally Generated Funds (IGF), pre-university educational institutions and technical universities with respect to financial irregularities.
The Chairperson of the Committee, Abena Osei-Asare, warned that institutions which persistently violate procurement and financial regulations would face strict sanctions.
She stressed that the Committee would no longer tolerate repeated breaches without consequences, especially in the area of procurement.
“When it comes to procurement issues, we will not sit and deliberate on them; we will transfer them directly to the Attorney-General to take up the case,” she stated.
She further underscored the need for public institutions to be accountable to citizens, noting that taxpayers expect prudent management of public resources.
According to her, the Committee had already made several referrals to the Attorney-General for further scrutiny and action.
Officials of the E.P College of Education, however, attributed the lapses to challenges in retrieving receipts from suppliers, some of whom they said were either outside the country or located far from the college.
They also explained that although some receipts were later presented, discrepancies in the dates of issuance raised concerns with auditors and the Committee.
Management of the Nanumba South District Assembly, on their part, indicated that some of the fuel purchases were made for vehicles operating outside the Assembly but providing services to it.
The Committee, however, maintained that all expenditures must be properly documented in line with public financial management regulations.
FROM YAHAYA NUHU NADAA, TAMALE
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