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The Minority Caucus in Parliament is requiring the Auditor General to present and publish the report for the 2019 financial year.
In June of this year, President Akufo-Addo directed Auditor General Daniel Dumelo to proceed with his accumulated leave.
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and several civil society organizations described it as a government tactic to cover up some discrepancies.
After replacing Daniel Dumelo, the Acting Auditor General, Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu still has to comply with the Constitution and the Audit Service Act, which requires him to audit and submit to Parliament his reports on the Ghana Public Accounts from the previous year within six (6) after the end of said prior year.
At a press conference in Accra today, the Minority Caucus in Parliament has voiced various concerns, noting that they are particularly concerned that the delays in the release of the Auditor General’s report for the 2019 financial year may be deliberate for the primary purpose to avoid more embarrassing situations. to the government.
According to minority leader Hon. Haruna Iddrisu, who addressed the press conference, he hopes the delays are not intended to cover up government misconduct because this year is an election year.
Therefore, the group calls on the Acting Auditor General to urgently submit his reports to Parliament for the financial year 2019.
“The Minority Caucus in Parliament, in the interests of accountability and transparency, asks the Acting Auditor General to do what is constitutionally required of him, as a matter of urgency, to present to Parliament and subsequently publish the Reports on the Audited Accounts of Government for the fiscal year 2019 according to the provisions of the Constitution (article 187 (5)) and the Law of the Audit Service of 2000 (Law 584) ”, Excmo. Haruna Iddrisu said at the press conference.
He added: “We also ask the President of the Republic to order the Acting Auditor General to urgently present said reports to Parliament for its consideration and report, as he ordered the Auditor General to proceed with his regulatory license.”
Find the full speech below:
CALL FOR THE PRESENTATION AND PUBLICATION OF THE AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORTS FOR THE 2019 FINANCIAL YEAR BY THE MINORITY CAUCUS IN PARLIAMENT MINORITY LEADER PRESS REPORT-HON HARUNA IDDRISU
Ghana is a country governed by law, the supremacy of the 1992 Constitution must be upheld and respected.
We have invited you here this morning to draw attention to a deliberate and unforgivable constitutional violation that is a consequence of the Executive’s intrusion and interference with an independent constitutional institution, the Auditor General – Audit Service.
You recall the zeal and promptness with which the president asked the auditor general to proceed with the license against all good governance councils, which were based on our collective quest to enable the auditor general, as is the case in Ghana, fight corruption and expose financial malfeasance. including misappropriation and embezzlement, which are common features of Auditor General Reports in the last decade with a substantial loss of state funds.
The Auditor General is required by the Constitution and the Audit Service Act to audit and submit to Parliament his reports on the Ghana Public Accounts for the previous year within six (6) after the end of the previous year.
Article 187 (5) of the Constitution provides the following:
“ The Auditor General, within the six months following the end of the financial year immediately prior to which of the accounts mentioned in clause (2) of this article refers, will present his report to Parliament and in that report, will call the attention to any irregularities in the audited accounts and any other matter that, in their opinion, should be brought to the attention of Parliament.
Article 20 of the Audit Service Law of 2000 (Law 586) also provides the following:
“ The Auditor General, within the six months following the end of the financial year immediately preceding to which each of the accounts mentioned in this part refers, shall present his report to Parliament and, in the report, shall draw attention to any irregularity in the audited accounts and any other matter that, in his opinion, should be brought to the attention of Parliament.
Without prejudice to the imperative of the previous provisions of the Constitution and Law 586, the Auditor General has not presented and published his reports, three (3) months before the close of the fiscal year.
It is worth noting that the Auditor General had previously complied with the above provisions regarding being up-to-date with his reports to Parliament.
For example, the Auditor General’s reports for fiscal year 2018 were submitted within the legal deadline.
Unfortunately, at the time of this press, the Auditor General had not yet submitted the reports for the 2019 financial year.
It is curious but ironic that the Auditor General’s reports are delayed after the President’s order to the Auditor General to proceed with leave.
The Auditor General has endeavored to ensure that all reports are submitted to Parliament within the deadlines established by law. It is therefore sad that the failure to submit such reports to Parliament on time only came after the unfortunate and unfortunate decision of the President, who ordered the Auditor General to proceed to mandatory retirement.
It should be noted that the Auditor General has an obligation to draw Parliament’s attention to cases where public money is not properly accounted for or where there is a deficiency due to fraud, non-compliance or error on the part of any person and that the Resources are used with due consideration. to economy, efficiency and effectiveness.
In the minority’s view, the president’s abrupt and reckless decision to order the auditor general to proceed with his accumulated license was not intended to muzzle the prosecutor by drawing attention to the many anomalies perpetrated by the government.
The Minority Caucus is particularly concerned that these delays may be deliberate with the primary purpose of avoiding further embarrassment for the Government. We are hopeful that the delays are not intended to cover up illegal acts by the Government because this year is an election year.
The Minority Caucus in Parliament, in the interests of accountability and transparency, asks the Acting Auditor General to do what is constitutionally required, as a matter of urgency, present to Parliament and subsequently publish the Reports on the Audited Accounts of the Government. for fiscal year 2019 according to the provisions of the Constitution (article 187 (5)) and the Audit Service Law of 2000 (Law 584).
We therefore ask the Acting Auditor General to urgently submit his reports to Parliament for the 2019 financial year.
In addition, we ask the President of the Republic to order the Acting Auditor General to urgently present said reports to Parliament for its consideration and report, just as he ordered the Auditor General to proceed with his statutory license.
Accountability, transparency and good governance oblige all of us to ensure that the Auditor General complies with the principles and dictates of the constitution and laws of Ghana.
Therefore, we call on well-meaning Ghanaians to join the minority in forcing the Attorney General to comply with Ghanaian laws and submit their reports to Parliament for scrutiny. Anything other than this will amount to attempts to cover up bad actions by the government.
Thank you
