The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has ordered the arrest a staff of Suame Municipal Assembly, Raphael Sarfo Asamoah, in the Ashanti Region over scholarship lapses amounting to GH¢404,757.11.
During the last sitting of the Committee in Sunyani on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, the Chairman of the Committee, Dr James Klutse Avedzi, called on the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), to apprehend Mr. Asamoah.
According to the Auditor General’s report, Mr Asamoah who was the Human Resource Manager of the Suame Municipal Assembly, was granted a two-year scholarship (2020 to 2022) to study with leave with pay, at the University of Manchester, UK.
He was expected to serve five years bond term after completion of the programme, but only served a year and went back to UK.
The Auditor General’s report recommended that the management of the assembly should liaise with the Head of Local Government Service, his employer, to locate the officer.
The assembly is however expected to recover the total salary and scholarship grant of GH¢404,757.11 from Mr Asamoah and lodge the money into the Auditor General’s Recoveries Account, otherwise, his guarantors should be held liable for refund of the amount.
Meanwhile, the Committee has ended its four-day Zone Two Public Hearing in Sunyani, covering the Western North, Ashanti, Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regions.
The Committee is considering the 2022 Auditor-General’s Report on the Management and Utilisation of District Assemblies Common Fund and Other Statutory Funds for the year ended 31st December 2022, Accounts of District Assemblies (IGF) for the year ended 31st December 2022, the Pre-University Educational Institutions for the year ended 31st December 2022 and Public Accounts of Ghana – Polytechnics for the period ended 31st December 2022.
Most of the infractions cited against the Assemblies and the schools were unearned salaries, payment vouchers unaccounted for, abandoned projects, no collection of textbooks and calculators and also non-gazetting of bylaws by the Assemblies.
The Chairman of the Committee in his closing remarks thanked the Members of the Committee, National and Regional Auditors, Vice-Chancellors, Heads and Principals of the various schools, Districts and Municipal Chief Executives, Coordinators, Clerks to the Committee and supporting staff of the Parliamentary Service for contributing to the success of the Public Hearing.
