Audit reports shouldn’t just be a ritual,prosecutions must follow – Ali-Nakyea
A tax lecturer, Dr. Abdallah Ali-Nakyea, is urging the state to take more concrete action on the findings of reports from the Auditor-General’s department.
Speaking on the Point of View on Citi TV, Dr. Ali-Nakyea said the release of reports by the Auditor-General’s department had become a mere ritual because it does not result in any actions.
As an example, he expected some of the irregularities cited in reports over the years to lead to some prosecutions
Financial irregularities committed by various statutory institutions for the year 2020 stood at GHS 12.8 billion, up from GHS3 billion and GHS5.5 billion in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
“I have always indicated that, with the office of the Special Prosecutor, I thought we would be able to rationalise some of these infractions and get him to investigate and prosecute,” he said.
With the Auditor-General’s power to surcharge, Dr. Ali-Nakyea said he expected the department to be going after the persons behind financial malfeasance.
He noted that if proper mechanisms are used to retrieve monies “then we will be giving meaning to the audit report.”
“Else it becomes an annual ritual that does not bring money back into government coffers. We need the revenue that has been misapplied.”
In addition, when the reports go to Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, he said “it is incumbent that respective institutions with the power to investigate and prosecute be made to take it up, and we do not let it be swept under the carpet as it has always been.”
