The Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) at the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee has disclosed that five lecturers have failed to honour their bond obligations, which has resulted in a GH¢1.7 million debt for the institution.
According to the Registrar of GIMPA, Victoria Kumbuor, the five lecturers were sponsored to pursue doctoral programmes abroad.
She detailed that Ann-Shirley Appiatse owes GH¢777,000, Julius Quarshie owes GH¢524,000, Dr Hanson Addy owes GH¢224,000, Afua Ataa Boakyewaa owes GH¢230,000, while Christiana Osei Bonsu has an outstanding amount of GH¢38,700.
Victoria Kumbuor, however, added that the institution has taken steps to enforce recovery, including freezing the entitlements of guarantors who backed the defaulting lecturers.
Speaking at the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee she stated, “The indebtedness has to do with sponsorships that the institute offered to some of our faculty to pursue PhD programmes, with the expectation that they would return to support the institute’s operations.
“Even though they signed the bonds, some of them refused to return. As a result, a decision was made to freeze their entitlements, including their provident fund and credit scheme benefits, as well as those of their guarantors. We have been able to recover some of the money,” she said.
Meanwhile, President John Dramani Mahama, last year, stated it was so pathetic watching Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearings.
John Mahama expressed deep concern over the persistent recklessness and scale of financial irregularities uncovered each year at the Public Accounts Committee sittings.
Speaking at the 12th Annual Conference of Chairpersons of Governing Boards and Chief Executives of Public Services in Ho on Wednesday, October 8, John Mahama lamented, “Recently, I’ve been watching the Public Accounts Committee, and it’s so pathetic, you know. Why must we every year congregate at the Public Accounts Committee, and then you hear all kinds of atrocious, you know, things? I mean, recklessness with public funds and resources.
“And so, I have a meeting on Thursday with the Chief Justice, the Attorney General, and others to find a final solution to this Auditor-General’s report. Those persons who infringe, are found guilty of infractions, or do not follow due procedure, or lead to loss of public resources — we must have a fast-track process,” he said.
John Mahama further cried out that despite the constitutional provisions guiding the implementation of audit recommendations, very little has been achieved
He explained, “We’ve not fully implemented the constitutional provision. There is a part that says after the Public Accounts Committee has sat on the Auditor-General’s report, Parliament must set up a committee to implement the findings”.
“What we don’t know is whether it should be a parliamentary committee or one made up of non-parliamentarians.”
“Every department is supposed to set up an ARIC, but once they’ve come from the Public Accounts Committee, virtually nobody follows up on the recommendations,” he said.
President Mahama added, “The audit reports implementation committees are not working. We must find a way to create a deterrent, until people know they can be held responsible for these things they do.”
“If we save GH¢15 billion, can you imagine what it could do? We must hold those who misuse the people’s resources to account so that others do not follow suit.”