Public Accounts Committee Need Power to Refer Culprits to Police

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) should have the authority to immediately refer individuals found guilty of financial malfeasance in the Auditor General’s report to the police for prosecution, Dr. James Klutse Avedzi, Chairman of the Committee said.

According to him, the current process, which involves recommending prosecution to the Attorney General, is lengthy and allows public officers and civil servants to repeatedly commit infractions cited by the Auditor General.

“I will not recommend prosecutorial powers for the committee. There should be another body that should be doing that job. And in Ghana, we have the Attorney General.

“We also have the office of the Special Prosecutor. There are enough to do that if they want to do the right thing. But the only power that I want to be giving to the committee is for the committee to be given the power where instantly that the people, the witnesses appear, and you have seen the wrong.

“Instantly, you refer this person to the security agencies to be picked. Statement is taken from them. Then the body that we want to have that prosecutorial power in, like the Attorney General, take over,” Dr Avedzi told EXPRESSNEWSGHANA during an interview in parliament on Friday, August 2, 2024, after the committee closed its sitting.

While Dr. Avedzi does not advocate for prosecutorial powers for the PAC, he calls for an immediate referral system to the appropriate security agencies when financial wrongdoing is identified. This approach would allow swift action, with the Attorney General or the Office of the Special Prosecutor taking over subsequent prosecution.

He noted that the current system’s delay in addressing audit reports, often spanning several years, results in minimal accountability, as involved individuals may retire or transfer before any action is taken.

To improve this, Dr. Avedzi suggested that Parliament should prioritize PAC reports, promptly communicate recommendations to the Executive, and ensure timely prosecution of offenders..

Touching on the failures of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) to prevent some illegal procurement process, Dr. Avedzi pointed out that civil servants often opt for the cheapest procurement methods, bypassing national tendering processes which ensure competition and transparency.

He said this preference for sole sourcing often leads to corruption, as approvals are frequently granted under questionable circumstances, often influenced by political pressure.

He criticized the Public Procurement Authority for approving sole sourcing requests that do not meet the necessary conditions.

“The methods of procurement are there. How many of these methods of procurement does the civil servant use in procuring goods for government? They want to go by the cheapest side. They write to the Public Procurement Authority for approval. That is what a corruption is. If you go by national tendering process, then you know there will be competition.

“It has an advantage of knowing the technical capacity of the company. Knowing that there will be price competition. Selecting the best in terms of price and in terms of the technical capacity of the company. But they don’t do this. They want company A to do the job. Once they want company A to do the job, it’s a matter of writing to the procurement authority.

“And I blame the PPA for most of these issues. The conditions under which sole sourcing will be applied. The requests that go to or come to the procurement authority, those requests don’t qualify under those conditions. And yet they go ahead and give approval. Is it a result of political influence or personality? Yes, political influence. For instance, the one who is put there as Chief Executive. The board members are all selected by the government. And the government asks you to approve this thing for me. He’s afraid that I’ll lose my job if I don’t approve what the government is asking me to do,” the PAC Chairman lamented.

To combat these issues, Dr. Avedzi proposed reforms to ensure the independence and job security of the PPA’s Chief Executive and Board Members, emphasizing that without fear of job loss, these officials would be more likely to reject improper procurement requests and enforce proper tendering processes.

**Officials of MDAs taking Oaths to answer questions**

Dr. Avedzi acknowledged the challenges the PAC faces, including delays in Parliament debating their reports and forwarding decisions to the relevant authorities.

He called for improved attention to PAC reports and a dedicated office within the Attorney General’s department to handle PAC recommendations.

He cited instances where recommended prosecutions were delayed for years due to administrative inefficiencies and thus called for more efficient communication and prompt action on PAC recommendations to ensure accountability and deter financial malfeasance in public service.