MPs beg for corrupt state officials – Auditor General’s department

Officials of the Auditor General’s department have revealed that members of parliament have been pleading on behalf of corrupt state officials who are investigated by the department.

A representative of the department Vincent Odikro Nyame told a conference organised by the Legal and constitutional committee of parliament in Accra Wednesday that the action by the MPs frustrate efforts to fight corruption in the public sector.

“There are times when some Honourable Members come to our offices to come and plead on behalf of some clients … that you sign it for him and let him go and our officers on the field will also do it. And when it comes before the Committee, then you will notice that it was signed two days or three days ago.

“This is real. Look on the dates when these documents were actually signed as certificates and you will be surprised. They were signed one week, two weeks, and sometimes three days before they submit it.

“We are doing our best but unfortunately everybody, including our Honourable Members, wants to assist them to stifle what we do. We hope that the House will do a little more to assist us if they stay out of this to let these men face it as it is,” he said.

Audit Service of Ghana is a constitutional body under the direction of a seven (7) member governing board. The Service is headed by the Auditor General who is mandated to audit the public accounts of Ghana and all public offices including Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, Public Corporations and Organisations established by an Act of Parliament and report the findings to Parliament. Audit Service is, therefore, the monitoring and accountability organ of the state, and the Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) of Ghana.