PAC to probe Auditor General's report against Jospong Group of Companies

Chairman of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has assured that the Committee will thoroughly probe allegations of contract inflation made by the Auditor General against the Jospong Group of Companies.

James Klutse Avedzi said the Committee will look at the reports, recommendation, and infractions cited by the Auditor General’s report on Metropolitan Municipal District Assembly (MMDAs) to see if there are cases of malfeasance, misapplication of funds.

He said based on their findings, the Public Financial Administration Act will be applied in dealing with those found to be culpable.

According to the Deputy Minority Leader, the police may be interested in investigating an issue of public misapplication or embezzlement because it is a crime but PAC will deal with the infraction aspect of it.

His comments follow Joy News’ Manasseh Azure Awuni’s latest report, Robbing the Assemblies, which the Police Criminal Investigative Department is currently investigating.

Related: Scandal! Waste bins contract to Jospong may be inflated by GHS130m

So far Mr Azure Awuni has provided documentary, video and audio evidence of the investigations he conducted on some questionable contracts signed between the Local Government Ministry under erstwhile President John Mahama and the Jospong Group of companies.

The police among other things sought clarifications on how the Jospong Group of companies won contracts to supply one million waste bins and 900,000 bin liners, at prices higher than the market prices for the same products.

The $74 million contract sole sourced to five Jospong subsidiaries had a possible contract inflation of about ¢130 million.

Even though the company sold the waste bins on the market at ¢150.00, they sold it to the government at $60 each the equivalent of which was ¢250 million at the time.

Related: Police question Manasseh over Jospong scandal

But according to Mr Avedzi, what the police is currently doing will not in anyway affect the work of PAC.

“We will continue to do our work and then invite the people who have been indicted. If the explanations satisfy the committee, then that ends it, if it doesn’t, then the Committee will resort to the entire House [of Parliament] for a decision.

“The decision of the House will then be implemented by the audit committee and that is why if there is the need to refund the money, the person will do so,” he said.

He said they do not take instructions from the Police Service but from the Speaker of Parliament whom they report to.

Mr Avedzi said they do not deal with individuals but rather they deal with institutions but in cases where a report cites an individual and there is the need to take submissions from an individual, the Committee will do so.

“If we found out that the individual committed an offence that needs punishing by the law, we will carry out that recommendation,” he said.

 

 

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