PARLIAMENT’s Committee on Local Government and Rural Development has expressed concern over the increasing cases of missing District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) machines at various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), blaming the situation partly on the failure to properly document and insure the equipment.
The chairperson of the Committee, Mrs Queenster Maame Pokuah Sawyerr, said the absence of proper documentation made it difficult for the assemblies and security agencies to trace and retrieve stolen machines, resulting in financial losses to the country.
The machines were procured and launched in 2024 by the previous administration to equip the MMDAs with the necessary resources to rehabilitate and maintain roads within their respective jurisdictions.
Mrs Sawyerr raised the concern at a public hearing of Parliament on Friday to consider the 2025 Auditor-General’s Report on MMDAs, which was referred to the Committee by the Speaker, Mr Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin.
Appearing before the Committee, the Coordinating Director of the Sagnarigu Municipal Assembly, Mr Mahmud M. Osman, disclosed that four DRIP machines had been stolen from the Assembly and were yet to be retrieved by the police.
He said the machines, which were without engines, were stolen after the 2024 general elections from the Urban Roads Department, located close to a police station.
“The issue in question has to do with the concrete mixers. During post-election activities, Sagnarigu Municipal Assembly unfortunately had four of its concrete mixers stolen, and we reported it to the police,” Mr Osman said.
“During the post-election violence, people went to the Urban Roads Department and started taking the machines. It was in the daytime and, incidentally, that particular place was close to police headquarters. The machines had no engines, and you have to pull them without sparking,” he added.
Mr Osman further explained that the machines were not accompanied by the necessary documentation when they were handed over to the Assembly.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the Assembly, Mr Abdulai Imoro Gong, said the Assembly was yet to receive a police report on the incident before taking the necessary action.
Mrs Sawyerr described the absence of proper documentation for the DRIP machines as worrying, saying it made it difficult for security agencies to identify and retrieve the equipment when stolen.
“There should be documentation that will help us find where the machines are. That is how, when we bring cars or anybody brings anything through the port, there are documentations to it and it is registered.
“So there are no documentation to the DRIP machines in the whole of Ghana, so if somebody steals it, what happens to the assembly?” she lamented.
The Director-General of the Internal Audit Agency (IAA), Mr Conrad Z. Dumbah, said the lack of proper documentation for the DRIP machines was a common challenge among the MMDAs, based on reports reviewed by the agency.
He said the agency could only quantify the risks and engage the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) and the provider of the machines to obtain the original documentation to facilitate efforts to retrieve stolen equipment.
Mrs Sawyerr said the Committee would compile a list of all MMDAs that had recorded cases of stolen DRIP machines and subsequently take a decision on the matter.
The Deputy Ranking Member of the Committee, Mr Alexander Akwasi Acquah, also underscored the need for the government to conduct a comprehensive inventory of the DRIP machines to ensure proper tracking and accountability.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
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