Blame parliament for Achimota-Ofankor road revenue losses – Speaker

The Speaker of Parliament, Edward Doe Adjaho has expressed anger over what he said was parliament’s failure to properly scrutinise the Achimota-Ofankor road project, leading to a loss of revenue of over GHS4 million.

The Speaker made this known when the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) presented its audit report on the construction of the Achimota-Ofankor road project.

The project, which begun in 2006 at an estimated cost of GHS40.4million, increased to GHS128million, partly attributed to unrelated expenditure including the purchase of a BMW to monitor the project.

Mr Adjaho on Friday May 20 blamed the house for the misapplication of funds for the project by the Ministries of Roads and Highways and Finance as well as the Ghana Highways Authority.

“The argument has been made on the floor from both sides of the house that we should sanction; I think that the Roads and Transport Committee has failed this house, because…this was not a one-year project. Each year, they bring to you, you recommend for appropriation, and they give you the expenditure returns. If the committee was looking at it, that it moved from GHS159000 to GHS7million as we are being told, why didn’t they raise the red flag at that time? They do not need money to go to Ofankor to raise the red flag at that stage, but they recommended that the budget of the Ministry and subsequent budgets of the Ministry for this project should be approved. It is the committee that has failed this house and the house has also failed the people,” the speaker said.

But the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South, Samuel Atta Akyea, believed the Ghana Highways Authority, and not Parliament, should be held accountable for any liabilities.

“Parliament was not responsible for putting the project for contract and also for tender. That was not the job for parliament. If they brought some estimates here and the estimates did not detail the kind of ways they were going to apply the money, how will parliament know? How will parliament know for instance that they will use some of the money intended for the road to go and buy a luxury car, Seven Series Mercedes Benz for the Minister, just for purposes of going to inspect a 5.8km road. How will parliament know? How will parliament know that some of the monies will be diverted to go and train people in GIMPA? How will parliament know for instance that they will use some of the money to refurbish offices? So, I do not agree with the suggestion that parliament should be blamed for what the Ghana Highway Authority and the Minister have done, I don’t agree at all,” he told parliamentary correspondent, Ekow Annan.