Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, has revealed that COVID-19 presented government the opportunity to loot and share the country’s national resources.
According to him, the Auditor General’s report on the Covid-19 fund allocations provides evidence to the exploiting nature of the government particularly in the year 2020. He stated that the spending captured in the A-G’s report expressely shows the extent of rot in the Akufo-Addo-led administration.
Mr Iddrisu noted that some 81 million US dollars, for instance, paid into UNICEF account for drugs have not been supplied three years on.
“You’ve seen over-invoicing from some state institutions. You’ve seen the Minister of Health not able to account for monies allocated to them in the name of emergency procurements. So, we were right as a minority when we said that Covid was a loot and share opportunity for government particularly in the 2020…”
Haruna Iddrisu
The minority leader explained that had the country not been plunged into an economic crisis which necessitated the investigation into Covid-19 expenditure, Ghanaians would not have known of the reckless spending that had characterized the Covid-19 era.
He indicated that while the government has been capitalizing on the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war as the cause for the economic hardship the country is facing, the Auditor General’s report reveals otherwise.
“You’ve seen them rent premises, lease properties, pay 15 to13million Ghana cedis in Adaklu. How much is the worth of a home there and you pay this quantum of money in the name of Covid that is even being utilized? Soo wasteful expenditure.”
Haruna Iddrisu
Government’s expenditure for COVID-19
Mr Iddrisu underscored that when it comes to the expenditure for Covid, “we’re being told that out of GHC21 billion, GHC10 billion went into budget support”. With this, he highlighted that Covid was in some way even “helpful to this administration” in terms of the resources that it mobilized either from the World Bank, the IMF or from the Contingency fund.
“… They got substantial amounts of resources for budget support. Only GHC11 billion of the GHC21 billion was used for the purpose of Covid and even that, they are struggling to account for it.”
Haruna Iddrisu
Mr Iddrisu expressed the need for the Auditor General to be commended for the revelations in the report of Covid, while the Majority should be “ashamed for not even wanting sunshine on the loot” that was associated with Covid resources.
Commenting on the leadership of the country, the minority leader revealed that President Akufo-Addo has “lost his balance as leader” of the country. This, he explained, is seen through the President’s loss of respect for public opinion.
“He’s squandered massive goodwill and an opportunity to govern well. He’s thrown all the governance ethos to the dogs… So, governance is now like I have the mandate and therefore he doesn’t even respect public opinion, he doesn’t respect the discourse that goes on.”
Haruna Iddrisu
Mr Iddrisu stated that the mismanagement of the country’s fiscal space and borrowing the Akufo-Addo-led administration had embarked on is responsible for how badly the economy is faring now.
The minority leader’s comment followed the latest Auditor-General’s report on Covid-19 expenditure which revealed some infractions in government expenditure from March 2020 to June 2022.
Some of the infractions that were uncovered included the paying of a total amount of US$607,419.02 out of US$4,049,460.12 for the purchase of 26 ambulances that were never delivered, paying unapproved GH ₵151,500 by the Information Ministry to its own staff as Covid insurance, and paying for $80 million worth of vaccines by the government that was never delivered, amongst others.
Meanwhile, the Health Committee in Parliament has set February 7 as the date to commence a public hearing on the Covid-19 expenditure by government.
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