PAC directs CMB, PPA to retrieve GH¢312,784 from defaulting staff

The Cocoa Marketing Company (CMC), a subsidiary of the Ghana Cocoa Board and the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) are to go after their staff debtors who have defaulted in the payment of GH¢312,784 cumulatively some of which date back as 2002.

According to the Auditor-General’s report on the accounts of Public Boards Corporations and other Statutory Institutions for the year ending December 31, 2017, currently, under scrutiny by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, successive managements of the two state institutions had not made the needed efforts to retrieve the monies.

For the PPA, the Auditor-General’s report said the amount, GH¢32,452, was given to newly employed staff as a short-term loan to cushion them, awaiting their placement on the mechanised payroll system of the Controller and Accountant-General.

The Auditor-General reported that, though GH¢8,000 of the existing GH¢22,912 was paid in 2016, additional GH¢17,540 more was granted staff as loan by end of the year bringing the total amount to GH¢32,452.

“We recommend that the authority should have a policy concerning repayment of loans and salary advances and should liaise with the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department for the necessary deductions to be made at source.”

Appearing before the PAC in Accra yesterday the Managing Director of the CMC, Vincent Okyere Akomea, explained that “the company moved from one accounting software to another so in the process of moving, these issues were not detected and since it came to the attention of the company, we have issued demand notices to them.”

Indicating that the defaulters, who were on retirement, had been identified, Mr Akomea said demand notices had been issued to both the living retirees and the next of kin of those who had passed on.

“So we are in the process of recovering these amounts,” he assured.

Responding to queries on why the Authority had failed to recoup the monies, Acting Chief Executive Officer, Frank Mantey said steps had been initiated to retrieve the money.

“We have issued demand notices to them (defaulters) and subsequently written to the Controller and Accountant-General to do deduction at source.

“We have taken notice of this so going forward, any advances that we grant any staff, we will ensure that we liaise with the Controller and Accountant-General’s to assist us do the retrievals,” he said.

One of the defaulters, Mr Mantey said was dead and that his family had been dully informed about the indebtedness of the deceased to the Authority.