The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament during its recent public hearing on the Auditor-General’s report on the Public Accounts of Ghana has revealed alarming financial irregularities within tertiary institutions for the period ending December 31, 2022.
During the Public Account Committee hearing, a myriad of infractions came to light, which ranges from uncompetitive procurement practices, management problems, low liquidity ratios, locked-up funds, fees from rentals, failure to return to post after study leave, to the payment of unearned salaries.
The Chairman for the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament and Member of Parliament for Ketu North, Honorable James Klutse Avedze commenting on the issues, particularly raised concerns about the University of Ghana, Legon’s recurrent engagement in uncompetitive procurement practices.
The Honorable Avedze emphasized that such practices contravened the Public Procurement Act of the country and other regulations of Parliament and further highlighted that such issue of procurement breaches have been a recurring problem for the University, as indicated in previous audit reports.
The former Deputy Minority Leader sternly warned the University of Ghana, Legon officials present at the hearing to rectify the situation and demanded assurances that corrective measures would be implemented accordingly to address its procurement breaches and infractions.
Urgent Call To Recover Locked-Up Funds
Furthermore, the Public Account Committee during its public hearing on the Auditor-General’s report on the Public Accounts of Ghana relating to the various public tertiary institutions in the country revealed that a host of the public tertiary institutions in the country have their funds locked up at some defunct financial institutions.
The Chairman of the Public Account Committee, Honorable James Klutse Avedze commenting on the issues expressed deep concerns about the development and further urged all the implicated institutions to exert efforts to recover funds that were locked up in some defunct financial institutions.
The Ketu North Member of Parliament of the opposition National Democratic Congress further underscored the importance of safeguarding and retrieving such funds for the benefit of the institutions involved.
Moreover, the Public Account Committee of Parliament’s public hearing shed light on the financial challenges faced by tertiary institutions in Ghana, revealing the urgent need for corrective measures to be undertaken to address such challenges as a soon as possible.
The other members of the committee also emphasized the need for the implicated institutions to take swift action to address the highlighted issues and work towards financial transparency and accountability.
The Public Account Committee of Parliament which is tasked with scrutinizing the financial practices of various public entities in the country, particularly focused on some prominent tertiary institutions that are under the Ministry of Education.
The tertiary institutions that appeared before the Public Account Committee of Parliament included the University of Development Studies (UDS), the University of Ghana (UG), the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ), Akenten Appiah Menka University of Skills Training, and the Ghana Institute of Languages.
Other educational institutions that appeared before the Public Account of Parliament in its public hearing included the Government Technical Training Center, the University of Cape Coast (UCC), the University of Ghana Enterprises Limited, and the University of Professional Studies (UPSA),
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