Debates of 26 Jun 2019

MR SPEAKER
PRAYERS 10:33 a.m.
VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS AND THE OFFICIAL REPORT 10:33 a.m.
Mr Speaker 10:33 a.m.
Hon Members, Correction of Votes and Proceedings of Tuesday, 25th June, 2019.
Pages 1…9 --
Mr S. A. Jabanyite 10:33 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I was in the House yesterday, but I have been marked absent on page 8, item listed 45.
Mr Speaker 10:33 a.m.
Thank you very much, Hon Member.
Page 9…15
Hon Members, the Votes and Proceedings of Tuesday, 25th June, 2019 as corrected, is hereby adopted as the true record of proceedings.
Hon Members, correction of Official Report dated Wednesday, 29th May, 2019.
Mr Speaker 10:33 a.m.
Hon Members, item listed 3; we have a Statement in the name of Hon Dr Kojo Appiah- Kubi on Female Genital Mutilation.
Yes, Hon Member?
STATEMENTS 10:43 a.m.
Dr Kojo Appiah-Kubi (NPP -- Atwima Kwanwoma) 10:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), sometimes referred to as female circumcision or cutting persists in many parts of the developing world, particularly, in Africa and the Middle East. It is estimated that about 200 million girls and women have been cut in about 30 countries, and as many as 30 million girls are at risk of being cut before their 15th birthday if current trends continue.
The Committee on Gender, Children and Social Protection wants to highlight this phenomenon since it constitutes a typical violation of the rights of children in an era when the world is celebrating 30 years of the
international convention on the rights of children, which Ghana has ratified.
The procedure involves partial or total removal of the female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for cultural, religious or other therapeutic reasons.
Mr Speaker, FGM in Ghana is prevalent in the northern parts of the country, where it is seen as a passage rite into adulthood and usually undertaken just before marriage. Recent evidence indicates that the practice has declined tremendously from a high prevalence rate of 77 per cent in the 1990s to about a national average of four per cent due to advocacy and sensitisation carried out over the years.
A UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) in 2018 also estimated that about one per cent of girls aged between zero and 14 years in Ghana have undergone female genital mutilation whereas more than four per cent of girls and women aged between 15 and 49 years in Ghana have also experienced it.
However, FGM seems to predominate in the Upper East Region where about 38 per cent of all women are estimated to have been cut. Bawku Municipality, for instance, is said to have the highest prevalence rate of 82 per cent of all women aged between 15 and 49.
Mr Speaker, FGM has no health benefits and only causes severe harm to girls and women. Clinical studies have revealed that FGM is detrimental to reproductive health and predisposes girls to further health complications in the short to long term. The immediate complications of Female Genital Mutilation include severe pain, shock, haemorrhage, urine retention, and injury to adjacent tissue or death while the long-term consequences include urinary incontinence, painful sexual intercourse, sexual dysfunction and difficulties with childbirth.
In the Kassena-Nankana District for instance which has a high rate of female genital mutilation among mothers, for instance, studies have found FGM to be associated with a higher proportion of stillbirths and caesarean sections. There are also concerns about the potential risk of increased Human Immuno deficiency Virus (HIV) transmission from the use of crude and same instruments on several victims. Many victims are also said to suffer from feelings of incompleteness, anxiety and depression.
Mr Speaker, FGM is said to constitute a violation of the human rights of the girl-child and women. It reflects deep-rooted inequality among the sexes, and constitutes an extreme form of discrimination against women. It is nearly always carried out on
Dr Kojo Appiah-Kubi (NPP -- Atwima Kwanwoma) 10:43 a.m.


minors and is also a violation of children rights.

The practice, also, violates a person's right to health, security and physical integrity; the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and the right to life when the procedure results in death. It is in the light of this that Ghana has for long proscribed FGM on the back of several international and regional human rights treaties and consensus documents that the country has ratified and adopted.

Similarly, the 1992 Constitution of Ghana in its bid to protect the dignity of all Ghanaians from torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment has repeatedly in several articles the examples of which are articles 15, 26(2), 28(3), and 39(2) all abolished such traditional practices, including FGM, which are injurious to the physical, health and mental well-being of a person. The Criminal and other Offences Act 1960 (Act 29) as amended, even specifically prohibits ‘female circumcision' and makes anyone found culpable of involvement in FGM to be liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term between 5 and 10 years.

Mr Speaker, in spite of these stringent laws against it, FGM continues to be widely practiced,

particularly, in the northern part of the country. This situation seems to seriously impede Ghana's efforts to achieving gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls and thereby attain Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 by

2030.

Mr Speaker, Ghana indeed, can be seen to be doing a lot against this canker. But by all indications, the country needs to accelerate efforts to leave no one behind. If it wants to ensure the total abandonment of the practice and attain the SDG 5 by 2030, it would need to strengthen its efforts with other measures including:

Tackling risk factors that contribute to high rates of women circumcision.

Revising all legal frameworks and enforcing existing laws against the practice with stiffer punishment.

Developing effective strategies and action plans, with targets and timelines, and strong monitoring mechanisms.

Implementing interventions that target community members, particularly women with little education and intensifying girl- child education in those settings at high risks of FGM practice.

Raising awareness and advocacy about the harms of FGM and reaching out to and working in partnership with resident communities at risk.

Showing greater political commitment on the part of political leaders and legislators to promote zero tolerance to the practice of FGM.

Mr Speaker, this year, as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Ghana has ratified, it is incumbent on all stakeholders to strengthen the capacity of children and females to make decisions regarding matters that affect them. It is against this backdrop that I want to call on all stakeholders, particularly, legislators, CSOs, and the Government to show zero tolerance to FGM.

I thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to make this Statement.
Mr Speaker 10:43 a.m.
Thank you very much, Hon Member, for this well- researched Statement.
Ms Angela O. Alorwu-Tay (NDC -- Afadzato South) 10:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in contributing to the Statement made by my senior
Colleague, science tells us that the act of circumcision causes a lot of damage to the female. In the 1990s we used to hear a lot about this particular act by some of our people in the northern part of Ghana. Today, it is very scarce and nobody talks about the need to eliminate female circumcision. How can we get there? Even when there was a lot of education on the need to stop it, it kept going on. Why is nobody talking about it today? The laws are there to punish the perpetrators of such acts but are we using them? Are people reporting it to the authorities?
Mr Speaker, science again tells us that the clitoris is the most sensitive part in sexual intercourse. I stand corrected but this is science-based. So it means that any woman whose clitoris has been taken away may not be able to enjoy the act. [Interruption] -- That is what science says and please; Hon Members can go and read it.
The physical pain and psycho- logical pain of not being complete by a part of one's organ taken -- As women, we take pride in what we have and when we involve ourselves in the act; we want to enjoy it with our men. But from what I have read, it even decreases lubrication. The women are not able to lubricate to enable them enjoy the act.
Mr Speaker 10:43 a.m.
Hon Afenyo- Markin?
Mr Alexander K. Afenyo- Markin (NPP -- Effutu) 10:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in accord with the provisions of our in-house laws, I shall make brief comments on the Statement ably made by my respected senior Colleague.
Mr Speaker, our Constitution is clear that practices and customs that are inconsistent with our Constitution would not be so recognised. And to the extent of such inconsistency, these practices must cease to exist.
Yes, people have said that when they engage in such an act, it makes the woman stable; it makes the woman more faithful; it makes the woman not to engage in -- as they claim, some immoral promiscuous conduct.
Mr Speaker, but such a view, no matter how a group of people believe in it as part of their tradition, can never reconcile with contemporary views on the rights of women. Therefore, Mr Speaker, I would agree with the Hon Member who made the Statement and my respected Hon Colleague, who earlier commented on this matter that we must increase education on this.
Mr Speaker, how would a woman feel when she gets into a relationship and the husband wants to touch her for pleasure and that thing is absent? If it is absent, her own self-esteem would come down because it is not there and it appears that many men would be looking for it -- [Interruptions] -- Mr Speaker, it has been mentioned, I need not
mention it. My Hon Colleague who spoke earlier before me, mentioned it. Those who paid attention heard it.
Mr Speaker, at the risk of being repetitive and upon the demand, I shall reluctantly —
Mr Speaker 10:43 a.m.
So far as I know, there is no demand -- [Laughter.]
Mr Afenyo-Markin 10:43 a.m.
Very well, Mr Speaker. But the records must reflect that FGM includes the taking off of that part of a lady's - Mr Speaker, I am not a science student but clearly, it has to do with the removal of the clitoris. That is what they say.
Mr Speaker, clearly, this is sex education and playing around the words would not drum home the message. It is not right to take away the clitoris of our young ladies. No! Not when they are babies or when they are young adults. It is not right and it is against their rights.
Therefore as Hon Members of Parliament, we owe it a duty to educate our constituents. Any community in Ghana that holds the view that engaging in FGM, which means taking off the clitoris — Mr Speaker, even the conditions under which it is done is very traumatising. Therefore let it be known out there that this Parliament of Ghana is against
such a practice. Let it also be known out there that this Parliament of Ghana is committed to taking steps that would help eradicate this practice. It is not good; it is not right.
Mr Speaker, I therefore conclude by urging all those Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs); all those bodies that have made it their object to educate families, ethnic groups and people on the effect of this, to continue to intensify their efforts.
Then again, Mr Speaker, in concluding, it is important that we also engage those who have suffered from this by counselling them. We need to counsel them that if one suffers such an unfortunate situation, they should not think that they are less a woman. Then, to the men, if you meet your future wife and for some reason her thing is cut off, it does not mean that she is not a woman enough. Tell yourself that no matter what, you can still enjoy her; you can take other steps to arouse her. Men should not abandon a woman merely because her clitoris has been taken off through this outmoded practice.
Mr Speaker, no man in this country should ever let a woman feel bad because as a baby, she did not know; she could not control herself and such a thing was done to her. No man should abandon a beautiful lady just
Mr Speaker 10:43 a.m.
Yes, Hon Member?
Dr Sebastian N. Sandaare (NDC -- Daffiama/ Busie/Issa) 11:03 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity.
I commend the Hon Member who made the Statement on this very important topic of FGM, which is an age-old practice that was based on the assumption that if the clitoris of a young girl is not removed, she would
grow up to be a lady that would not be faithful; a lady that involves in practices that would not be good. But Mr Speaker, that practice as we know, is more of a human right issue than even a medical issue.
Mr Speaker, now, evidence abounds that removing the clitoris, in fact, in modern days, it is now also defined as Female Genital Cutting (FGC) where it even goes beyond just removing the clitoris; they do it and it results in complications that affect the reproductive life of the woman.

Mr Speaker, it is known and I believe my senior Hon Colleagues, both males and females here would agree that it is not just that part of the woman that allows her to enjoy sex. There are various parts of both men and women that can be stimulated to arouse them. Therefore, that age-old practice cannot continue as doing that is against the dignity of girls who grow up to be women.

From medical practice, those with FGM face complications in bringing forth children. Apart from infections, it is difficult for the baby to come out during child delivery. The other way to bring out the baby is through caesarean section with its own complications. I, therefore, support
Dr Sebastian N. Sandaare (NDC -- Daffiama/ Busie/Issa) 11:03 a.m.
the Hon Member who made the Statement, that in this age and era, it is a practice that should not exist. Its complications are more than its benefits. I do not even see any benefits of such a practice and would not recommend it.
Let us educate our public and create the awareness that it is archaic and does not prove what it is intended to. Because those who have met ladies with FGM would agree that sometimes the ladies enjoy depending on the parts that are stimulated in place of the clitoris. I agree with the Hon Member that we should continue the public education. Since it also has cultural and religious dimensions, we have to be careful and engage in more public awareness creation and public education to help them understand the complications of this practice.
Rev John Ntim Fordjour ( NPP — Assin South): Mr Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to comment on the Statement ably made by Hon Dr Appiah-Kubi. Mr Speaker, the Statement is on a very important subject which at the moment, many may not see as a matter of concern. This is because when you look at the prevalence rate and at the aggregate level, it is four per cent in the country. However, in some parts of the country and some localised locations, the prevalence
rate is as high as 36 per cent, 82 per cent and in some cases, 86 per cent.
As a young child, when I was first introduced to such a subject in the study of Social Studies in my village, Assin Kruwa, I just could not fathom how our respected daughters and mothers would have to be subjected to such an ordeal and inhumane practice.
Mr Speaker, this remains a matter that has been deeply entrenched in beliefs and that is why it has become a bit challenging to fully eradicate this rather outmoded practice. Our Constitution makes it clear under The Directive Principles of State Policy in article 35 (4) which reads:
“The State shall cultivate among all Ghanaians respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms and the dignity of the human person.”
We would all agree that this practice violates the dignity of the persons affected and grossly violates their human rights. In most cases, if not all, women who have gone through this ordeal, are left with a lifetime of low self-esteem and this affects them in many ways that cannot be expressed.
Mr Speaker, the prevalence rate as has been reaffirmed in the

Statement that was read, shows that many hundreds of thousands of our young girls, still stand at risk of going through this rather outmoded practice. It is important that we all collaborate in various ways to ensure its full eradication, recounting the efforts that have been put in place since its outlawing in 1994.

Mr Speaker, even though the prevalence rate since 1994 has considerably come down to four per cent, as we speak, there is still a lot more work that needs to be done to ensure that if not in the next few years, in the next decade, FGM must be considered a thing of the past within the four corners of this country.

As part of the strategies and efforts that we all have to focus on is engaging the stakeholders such as traditional leaders and opinion leaders, particularly in locations where this practice is very prevalent to understand that however tenable to them the reasons assigned to this practice must have been, there may not have been any empirical evidence to support that claim. It is therefore important for the society to shift towards respecting the dignity and human rights of our daughters and women.

For this reason, that continuous engagement, I believe, would go a long

way and to a large extent to help our traditional leaders, opinion leaders and people of influence, particularly those in the highly endemic areas, to appreciate and possibly, have a new perspective on totally respecting the human dignity of our women.

Mr Speaker, again, various researches have also confirmed that it is highly prevalent in areas and among women of low socio-economic status. For this reason, one other way of empowering our women to stand resilient against this practice is education. I believe that in our Constitution and various programmes implemented, particularly with the introduction of the free Senior High School education, we are gradually getting to a place where our women and young ladies would be highly educated and our opinion leaders would appreciate same. Again, women would have the economic empowerment to be able to escape being victims of this rather outmoded practice.

With these few comments, I would want us all to join this collective resolve. I would also want us to concentrate energy, particularly in where the prevalence rates are as high as 36 per cent and 82 per cent, to ensure that within the shortest possible time, we would not celebrate a four per cent prevalence rate but would celebrate a zero per cent prevalence rate.
Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka (NDC -- Asawase) 11:13 a.m.
Mr Speaker, let me commend my Hon Colleague for this Statement. I would add that it is a cruelty against the girl- child for what is happening to them. It is so because of the danger that it poses. One, is the environment under which it is done, with not necessarily sterilised tools. Looking at the ages and the cut, there are many instances where the young girls bleed to death.
This is a criminal act and as a country, we must do everything we can to let our compatriots understand that culture is good so long as it is not injurious to the human body and individuals involved.

There is no doubt that Africa has a beautiful culture, but we must also admit that some of the acts go way below the minimum standard of living. This is because if a person indulges in an act that could lead to another person's death, obviously, there should be reasons to do away with it.

Recently, I watched a YouTube video where the First Lady of Sierra Leone, Her Excellency Fatimata Maada Bio, strongly defended female genital mutilation. I was surprised because she said it was rampant in Sierra Leone and The Gambia. She

also said that she was mutilated, her mother, grandmother, great grandmother and her siblings were all mutilated, and they did not have any challenges. She also said that she was able to give birth to four children without any complications or stigmatisation.

Mr Speaker, because she survived, she could tell her story; but many did not survive to tell their story. We are speaking because of the danger of death. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who associate this to Islam. I am not a clergy, but I have studied Islam to a medium level and it is nowhere in the teachings of Islam that this thing may be sanctioned -- whether in the teachings of the Holy Prophet, the Hadith or the Quran. People become Muslims and they carry their tradition and religion to Islam -- it is just like Christianity.

Mr Speaker, when I was a child, the Roman Catholic Church did not play drums during their services, but today, almost all the Roman Catholic Churches play drums. This is because someone championed and said drumming was part of the Ghanaian culture -- [Interruption.] The Hon First Deputy Speaker has mentioned the person's name, but I did not want to mention it - - which even led to the person, to some extent, being disadvantaged; but later, they saw wisdom in what he said.
Mr Matthew Nyindam (NPP - - Kpandai) 11:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to contribute to the Statement made by Hon Dr Appiah-Kubi.
Mr Speaker, female genital mutilation is an outmoded cultural practice. It was stated in the Statement that in the 1990s, it was about 77 per cent of women in the northern part of Ghana that were involved in this act; but happily today,
percentage wise, it has been reduced to about four per cent, which means that we have made a headway.
Mr Speaker, somebody may argue -- just as the Hon Minority Chief Whip said that the First Lady of Sierra Leone seriously advocated that she went through it and thought there was nothing wrong with it. Yes, culture is dynamic, and for that matter, we must look at the positive culture that we have and begin to practice it and do away with practices like the female genital mutilation or the tribal marks that the Hon Member made mention of. This is because it is just not right to deprive somebody of enjoyment.
We are all human beings and entitled to enjoy. So, if the intention is to reduce the urge of women to enjoy, then it is a violation. Female genital mutilation is usually done when the child is born and she does not know anything.

This child is subjected to the removal of her clitoris, and I believe that she will grow up and be an unhappy person.

Mr Speaker, this practice is also mostly carried out by women. I think that as a nation, we are making
Mr Speaker 11:23 a.m.
Thank you very much, Hon First Deputy Majority Whip.
This brings us to the end of Statement time.
At the Commencement of Public Business, item numbered 4 -- Presentation of Papers.
PAPERS 11:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker 11:23 a.m.
Item numbered 4 (b) by the Hon Chairman of the Committee on Works and Housing.
Hon First Deputy Majority Whip?
Mr Nyindam 11:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Chairman is not around. Could we take item numbered 5 -- Motion?
Mr Speaker 11:23 a.m.
Hon Member, I did not get you.
Mr Nyindam 11:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, if we could take item numbered 5 on page 3 of the Order Paper.
Mr Speaker 11:23 a.m.
Item numbered 5 by the Hon Chairman of the Committee.
In the process, the Hon First Deputy Speaker will take the Chair.
MOTIONS 11:23 a.m.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I
beg to move, that this Honourable House adopts the Report of the Public Accounts Committee on the report of the Auditor-General on the Accounts of District Assemblies for the Financial Year ended 31st December,
2016.
In so doing, I present your Committee's Report.
1.0 Introduction
The report of the Auditor-General on the accounts of District Assemblies for the year ended 31st December, 2016 was presented to Parliament on Friday, 6th October, 2017 in accordance with article 187 (2) and (5) of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
Pursuant to Order 165 (2) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of Ghana, the Report was referred to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for examination and report.
2.0 Purpose of the Audit
The purpose of the audit was for the Auditor-General to ascertain whether in his opinion:
i. The accounts have been properly kept.
ii. All public funds collected have been fully accounted for
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


and rules, regulations and procedures are sufficient to provide an effective check on the assessment, collection and proper allocation of revenue.

iii. Moneys have been expended for the purposes for which they were appropriated and expenditures made as authorised.

iv. Essential records are maintained and the rules and procedures applied are sufficient to safeguard and control the Assemblies' assets.

v. Programmes and activities of the Assemblies have been undertaken with due regard to economy, efficiency and effectiveness in relation to the resources utilised and results achieved.

vi. Whether the financial statements of the institutions give a true and fair view of the financial position as at the end of the year 2016.

The audit was also to ascertain the extent of compliance with the Financial Administration Act, 2003 (Act 654), Financial Administration

Regulation, 2004 (L. I. 1802), the Financial Memoranda for District Assemblies, 2004 the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663), and the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921) among others.

3.1 Methodology

To consider the report, the Committee grouped the regions of the country into five zones as indicated below:

Zone 1 -- Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions;

Zone 2 -- Ashanti and Brong- Ahafo Regions;

Zone 3 -- Western and Central Regions

Zone 4 -- Volta and Eastern Regions;

Zone 5 -- Greater Accra

Sittings for Zones 1 and 2 were held in Tamale and Sunyani respectively, while sittings in respect of Zones 3,4 and 5 were held in Takoradi, Ho and Accra respectively.

3.2 The Committee invited the under-listed officials of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) cited by the Auditor-

General in his Reports to appear before the committee to respond to the queries and issues raised by the Auditor-General:

i. Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives;

ii. Presiding Members;

iii. Metropolitan, Municipal and District C o o r d i n a t i n g Directors;

iv. Metropolitan, Municipal and District Finance Officers; and

v. Some officers responsible for the acts and omissions mentioned in the Reports of the Auditor-General.

On appearing before the Committee, the witnesses subscribed to the oath of a witness and answered questions relating to the issues raised in the Report of the Auditor-General as well as other issues of national interest.

The Deputy Auditor-General, Odame Agyekum, and a technical team from the Ghana Audit Service were also present at the Committee's sittings to offer clarifications on the queries and issues raised by the Auditor-General.

4.0 Acknowledgement

The Committee is grateful to the Hon Ministers for the Northern, Volta, Western and Brong-Ahafo Regions for the warm reception accorded the Committee during the visits to their Regions and for participating in the Committee's sittings.

The Committee is also grateful to the Auditor-General and his technical team, Chief Executives of MMDAs and their Management teams and other officials of MMDAs for availing themselves to assist the Committee in its deliberations.

Finally, the Committee extends its profound appreciation to the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) for supporting the activities of the Committee and the media (print and electronic) for publishing its proceedings.

5.0 Reference Documents

The Committee referred to the under-listed documents during its deliberation:

a. The 1992 Constitution of the the Republic of Ghana;

b. The Standing Orders of the Parliament of Ghana;
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


collections and external grants from fifty-one Assemblies. These recorded high surpluses with the remaining one

hundred and twenty-six Assemblies recording deficits. As in Appendix E attached.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
District Assembly should ensure that all the outstanding payment vouchers and documents are substantiated or be surcharged by the Auditor-General to pay the amount.
8.4 Indebtedness of Assembly Staff (unpaid Rent, unretired Imprest) -- GH¢34,157.00
The Committee observed that thirty-three officials of the Builsa North who had been allocated official accommodation failed to pay rent amounting to GH¢32,507.00 owed the Assembly.
The Committee expressed its displeasure at the failure of the Finance Officers to institute effective measures to ensure prompt deduction of rent totaling GH¢32,507.00 from staff occupying residential premises of the Assembly. This amount has so far not been recovered as at the time of public hearing.
The Committee noted that the issue of non-retirement of imprests as well as nonpayment of rent is a major challenge to a number of Assemblies but finds the situation unacceptable.
Recommendation
The Committee, therefore, recommends that Finance Officers of
the Assemblies involved should take immediate steps to introduce rent registers to monitor the occupancy and payment of rent within two weeks and report back to the Committee.
The Committee further demands that Management should ensure that rent due all occupants of official bungalows are deducted from the mechanised payroll system of Controller and Accountant- General to ensure regular deduction while ensuring that they undertake sensitisation programmes for Accounting Officers to encourage them to retire their imprests since non- retirement of imprests by the close of the year contravenes Regulation 288 of the FAR and liable to sanctions in accordance with Regulation 8(4)
8.5 Unretired Imprest GH¢1,350.00
The Committee noted that an Assembly staff of Bolgatanga who was granted imprest for official assignment did not account for an outstanding balance of GH¢1,350.0 in breach of Part XIII, Regulation 289 (1) of the FAR which provides that: “imprest shall be retired at the close of financial year and any imprest not so retired shall be adjusted to a personal advance account in the name of the imprest holder”.
Recommendation
The Committee noted this infraction was due to non-enforcement of existing rules and regulations on granting and retirement of imprest by the finance officer. The Committee, therefore, recommends the Audit committee of the Assembly to ensure that the amount should be recovered from the affected officer immediately and the finance officer under whose watch this breach occurred should be sanctioned appropriately in line with Regulation 8(4) of the Financial Administration Regulations to deter others from doing same.
5.0 Details of other Management Issues -- Upper West Region
9.1 Unaccounted Revenue
GH¢15,639.60
The Committee was informed that the Auditor-General conducted financial and compliance audits into the operations of one (1) Municipal and ten (10) District Assemblies in the Upper West Region.
The Committee observed that Revenue collectors at Wa Municipal Assembly and five (5) area councils under Nadowli Assembly failed to account for fourteen (14) value books with a face value of GH¢15,639.60.
Appendix G8 as attached provides details of all infractions in the Upper West Region. (Also see pages 80-82 on the Report of the A-G on the Accounts of District Assemblies for the financial year ended 2016).
Management indicated that Wa Municipal was able to recover the amount of GH¢3,448.00 and Nadowli Assembly, also accounted for the remaining GH¢12,191.60. A total of GH¢15,639.60 had been recovered during the sitting. Audit staff from the Region substantiated the GCRs
Recommendation
The Committee warned all Revenue collectors to make available value books during the period of audit as the consequences of these acts could attract surcharge in future.
9.2 Unaccounted Payments GH¢62,021.14 -- Para 266
The Committee observed that Daffiama-Bussie-lssa and Nandom District Assemblies and the Wa Municipal Assembly made payments totaling GH¢40,411.00 and GH¢21,610.14 respectively without payment vouchers or any documen- tary evidence to substantiate these payments contrary to Part VI, Regulations 11 and Part 1X

Regulations 1 and 7 of the Financial Memoranda for MMDAs which require all payments to be substantiated and supported with invoices, receipts and other relevant documents.

It emerged during the Committee's deliberations that the Finance Officers of the Assemblies found culpable of this irregularity could not present payment vouchers used at the time of the audit, but were able to produce the required documents totaling the amount of GH¢62,021.14.

The Committee cautioned the Assemblies that there might not be an opportunity for them in future to make amends later as the Auditor-General will surcharge the officers involved if they fail to present the required documents within the stipulated time given by law.

9.3 Failure to Remit Taxes- GH¢159,683.93-Para 268

The Committee observed that contrary to Regulations 117(1) of the Income Tax Act, 2015 (Act 896) which requires withholding tax agencies to deduct and remit withholding taxes from payments made for goods and services above a specific threshold to the Commissioner of tax within fifteen days after each month end, the Committee noted that Wa Municipal,

Wa East, Sisala West and Sisala East Assemblies violated three provisions of tax laws by not deducting taxes from payments made to suppliers of goods and services and not remitting withheld taxes to the Ghana Revenue Authority.

The infraction amounted to GH¢159,683.93 and comprised an amount of GH¢9,614.88 in respect of Wa Municipal, GH¢120,197.01 in respect of Wa East, GH¢2,095.89 for Sisala West and GH¢27,776.15 in respect of Sisala East. At the date of public hearing only Sisala West and Wa Municipal had deducted and remitted all withholding taxes to the GRA and documents were verified by audit staff.

However, Sisala East and Wa East still have not remitted taxes to the GRA with the amounts of GH¢27,776.15 and GH¢120,197.01 respectively still outstanding. Management of these two Assemblies explained that the Infraction occurred as a result of improper filing system. They contend that though they had deducted the tax from the suppliers, they could not trace the files for evidence of deductions as at the time of audit.

Recommendation

The Committee is of the view that, violation of tax laws is a breach of Financial Regulation and contributes to leakages in tax revenue which is
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
So far, three Assemblies have accounted for revenue amounting to GH¢10,750.00.00. However, Kpan- dai could only account for GH¢4,800.00. The revenue accounted for by these four Assemblies amounted to GH¢15,550.00. The outstanding unaccounted revenue is GH¢13,800.00 to be accounted for by the Kpandai Assembly.
The Committee noted that this infraction occurred as a result of ineffective supervision by Finance Officers over Revenue Collectors to ensure proper accounting for revenue of the Assemblies.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that Management of Kpandai Assembly should fully account for the remaining revenue within three weeks or the Auditor-General should identify persons responsible and surcharge them with the amount as well as the interest thereof.
10.2 Unaccounted Payments-
GH¢33,404.00
It also emerged that East Gonja, Nanumba North, West Gonja,West Mamprusi and Yendi Assemblies made payments for goods and
services amounting to GH¢33,404.00 without any documentary evidence such as invoices, vouchers and receipts to authenticate these payments. However, upon the invitation by the Public Accounts Committee for the Public hearing, East and West Gonja, Nanumba and Yendi Assemblies accounted for an amount of GH¢22,404.00. Audit staff from the Region corroborated that based on evidence of validation during their second visit to the Assemblies. West Mamprusi and Yendi still have unaccounted payments of GH¢9, 000.00 and GH¢5,660.00 out- standing respectively in their records.
The Committee views the above as a breach of FAR 39(1) and 39(2c) for not ensuring that funds are utilised in a manner to secure both optimum value for money and again the heads of department did not ensure the control and disbursement of funds.
Also, Management did not ensure that transactions were properly authenticated to show that amounts are due and payable and in accordance with FAR. 39(2)(c).
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that the remaining balance of GH¢11,000.00 should be accounted for by Yendi and West Mamprusi within three weeks, and
a report of this be submitted to the Committee or officers directly responsible be identified; and surcharged with interest.
10.3 Unpaid Rent by Staff (GH¢128,200) - Para 224
The Committee observed that Gushegu and Chereponi Assemblies failed to collect rent from their staff amounting to GH¢5,160.0
Management of Gushegu Assembly stated that the infraction was captured wrongly as “Staff Rent” instead of “Store Rent”. Management indicated with proof that the amount of GH¢288.00 store rent was retrieved. They could, however, not account for the balance due to the chieftaincy dispute in that area which made it difficult to have access to the people occupying the remaining stores. Unpaid rent of GH¢3,000.00 in respect of Chereponi and GH¢1,872.00 for Gushegu respectively stands at GH¢4, 872.00.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends to the Assemblies to ensure that they reach out to the tenants involved in order to
retrieve the revenue now that calm has been restored to the area.
10.4 Unretired Imprest of GH¢123,040.50 -- Central Gonja
The Committee observed that Management of Central Gonja did not ensure that an amount of GH¢123,040.50 accountable imprest granted to officers to undertake Assembly assignments were accounted for after execution of their duties. Upon the invitation by the Committee, the offenders quickly rushed to the bank and refunded an amount of GH¢86,227.50 leaving a remaining balance of GH¢36,813.00 still outstanding in the books of Central Gonja.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that Management of the Assemblies should ensure that: the officers who took the imprest retire the amounts involved within three weeks or the amount should be converted into advances and recovered from their salaries.
Also, the Finance Officer under whose watch this infraction occurred be sanctioned in accordance with Regulations 8(4) of the Financial Administration Regulations for breach of financial regulations.

11.0 Details of other Management Issues -- Ashanti Region

The Committee observed that 30 Assemblies consisting of one Metropolitan, eight municipals and 21 District Assemblies were audited in the Ashanti Region. Out of these, eighteen Assemblies, below were found to have unresolved Manage- ment issues:

11.1 Inadequate Controls over Revenue Col lection -- GH¢17,574,898.20 - Para 44

The Committee observed that Finance and Administration Sub- committee failed to live up to Part 1 Regulation 1(a) (IV) and Part 2(a) which requires them to inspect the Assemblies statement of revenue and expenditure as well as investigate variances and default in payments of revenue.

The Auditor- General reported that the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly contracted three firms to collect revenue on their behalf. However, these firms consistently collected lower amounts than the agreed revenues by the Assembly thus resulting in outstanding uncollected revenues amounting to GH¢17,

574,898.20.

Management of the Assembly informed the Committee that other factors contributed to the huge outstanding property rates including inaccurate and unreliable valuation list which contained a number of duplications, on quasi-Government properties, religious bodies' properties and unoccupied buildings. Management stated that measures have been taken to forestall such occurences by engaging a new contractor to implement a new system to value all properties within the Metropolis equitably and accurately as well implement a tax revenue management system to facilitate the collection of property rates. They indicated that a list of defaulters had been handed over to the Assembly's prosecutor and legal action has commenced while most of the defaulting revenue agencies had their contracts terminated. The amount of GH¢17,574,898.20 still stands unresolved as at our proceedings.

Recommendation

The Committee urged the Assembly to speed up its reform processes and ensure that the legal department fast- tracks the process to ensure all revenues due the Assembly are retrieved within reasonable time in order to forestall loss of value of the money involved.

11.2 Unpaid Judgement Debt-

GH¢49,639,126.12

The Committee observed that the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly awarded contracts for development projects amounting to GH¢3, 108,091.83; however, the Assembly was in breach of the contractual agreement by paying part of the amount totaling GH¢83,254.92, instead of the full amount. The contractors resorted to the courts and legal action was brought against KMA which attracted judgement debts of GH¢8,155,467.00 against the Assembly.

The head of legal department for KMA explained that the Assembly had appealed against the ruling, but has resorted to settlement arrangements and schedule of payments were been agreed upon. He informed the Committee that negotiations are far advanced with some other judgement creditors willing to cooperate with them to settle matters out of the courts to prevent further judgement debts.

It is indicative to note, however, that the Court of Appeal did quash a decision of the commercial court of an amount of GH¢42,400,000.00
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
Recommendation
The Committee expressed worry about the irresponsible manner in which Management of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly terminated contracts or failed to live up to its contractual obligations leading to numerous suits been instituted against the Assembly to the detriment of development projects and at the cost to the taxpayer.
The Committee recommends to the Auditor-General to consider instituting legal actions against public officers whose reckless and willful acts led to the loss of revenue to State agencies so as to save the State from this avoidable loss of revenue.
11.3 Unaccounted Payments -- GH¢472,487.12- Para 53
The Committee observed that twelve Assemblies made payments to the tune of GH¢363,301.89 without the relevant supporting documents to substantiate them at the time of audit. Upon receipt of invitation from the Committee to appear before it in public, seven (7) Assemblies, namely

Asante Akim South, Atwima Mponua, Ejisu Juaben, Mampong Municipal, Sekyere Afram Plains, Sekyere Kumawu and Sekyere South managed to substantiate their payments amounting to GH¢225,888.22. Their records were verified and

authenticated by audit staff of the region and cleared.

However, four Assemblies, Adansi South, Asante Akim Central, Ofinso and Ofinso North still could not account for the following amounts as provided in Table 3 below:

Recommendation

The Committee recommends that Management of the above named four Assemblies should ensure that the amounts involved in the outstanding unsubstantiated payments are recovered from the Coordinating directors and Finance Officers or the Auditor-General surcharge them with the amount to be recovered from their salaries.

The Committee further re- commends to the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development as well as the Local Government Service to notify Coordinating Directors and Finance Officers of all

Assemblies that failure to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Financial Memoranda for MMDAs is negligence of their monitoring function and, therefore, will be surcharged with the amounts not substantiated in future by the Auditor-General.

11.4 Payments for Fuel not Accounted for -- GH¢76,283.2 Para 53

Asante Akim Central, Asante Akim South, Bekwai, Kwabre East and Sekyere South failed to ensure that fuel purchased were lodged into the log books to provide evidence of acquisition and utilisation. As a result, the usage of fuel not recorded

amounted to GH¢76,283.23. Details as in page 19 paragraph 56 of 2016 the AG's Report.

The Assemblies submitted documents during the hearings to substantiate the utilisation of the amount of GH¢76,283.23. Auditors collaborated their presentations and the Assemblies were cleared.

The Committee, however, frowns at this and warns that Finance Officers should ensure the recording of all fuel consumption into a log book, since later verifications will not be tolerated and such violations will attract surcharges.

11.5 Payment for other Stores not accounted for -- GH¢32,902.00 Para 53

The Committee noted that Asante Akim, Offinso North and Sekyere South flouted Part XII Regulation 16 of the Financial Memoranda for MMDAs which requires all stores received by an Assembly to be supported by Local Purchase Order or an original of a store receipt voucher (SRV) and their subsequent recording in the stores ledger. These Assemblies, however, procured items without providing any proof of receipt and utilisation of stores items amounting to GH¢32,902.00.

At the public hearing, Sekyere South and Asante Akim South submitted evidence accounting for an amount of GH¢17,426.00, and this was verified and cleared by audit officials of the region.

An outstanding balance of GH¢15,932.00 and GH¢3,340.00 is yet to be accounted for by Asante Akim South and Ofinso North.

Recommendation

The Committee recommends that Management of the Assemblies should ensure the Store keepers and Finance Officers concerned account for the store items worth GH¢15,932.00 and GH¢3,340.00 within three weeks or various officers directly involved be surcharged with the amounts.

11.6 Unaccounted Value Books -- GH¢48,050.00 -- Paragraph 59

The Committee observed that Revenue Collectors in three District Assemblies failed to present value books comprising 29 GCRs, 45 Lorry Park tickets and 61 market tickets with a face value of GH¢48,050.00 for examination. As at the time of public hearing only Atwima Mponua, were able to account for 7 GCRs, 61 market tickets amounting to GH¢3,
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


050.00 while and Sekyere Afram Plains also accounted for 15 GCRs.

Management of Asokore Mampong, however, raised issue about errors detected concerning an amount of GH¢45,000 in respect to 456 lorry park tickets. They were of the view that the value per ticket is 50 pesewas and not 5 cedis as calculated by the audit team. Therefore, the total value of tickets not accounted for is GH¢2,250 and not GH¢45,000 as indicated. They informed the Committee that on the second visit of the auditors, the tickets were accounted for and submitted by Revenue collectors to the Auditors. This statement was collaborated by auditors and the Assembly was acquitted.

Recommendation

The Committee was satisfied but warned that surcharges will be applied in future and no retrospective accounting will be accepted 30 days after exit meeting with Auditors.

11.7 Rent Arrears -- GH¢34,785.00 - - Para graph 64

The Committee noted that Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Asante Akim Central, Offinso Municipal, Asante Akim South and Sekyere East whose staff benefited from official accommodation units failed to pay rent to the tune of GH¢34,785.00. During the public hearing to consider the Ashanti Region, it emerged that three out of the five Assemblies managed to recover some of the rent outstanding as indicated in table below:

Recommendation

The Committee holds the Coordinating Directors and Finance Officers responsible for failing to institute efficient measures to ensure immediate deduction of rent totaling GH¢34,785.00 from the salaries of staff occupying residential premises of the Assembly.

The Committee recommends that Finance Officers of the defaulting Assemblies involved should take immediate steps to recover the outstanding rent amounts from the salaries of the defaulters and also introduce rent registers to monitor the occupancy and payment of rent or be surcharged with the amounts involved by the Auditor-General for negligence of duty.

12.0 Details of other Management Issues -- Brong Ahafo Region

At a public hearing to consider the accounts of the Brong Ahafo Region, the Committee noted that out of 27 MMDAs, sixteen (16) MMDAs had a number of unresolved Audit queries as follows:

12.1 Revenue Not Accounted for

-- GH¢36,413.00

The Committee observed that Revenue collectors at Dormaa Central
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


the Assemblies involved in this abuse should ensure that the officers involved are reported to the police for legal actions to be taken to recover the outstanding amounts from the Revenue Officers as early as possible.

The Accounting and Revenue Officers who failed to properly supervise the Revenue Collectors should be sanctioned in accordance with FAR 8(4).

12.2 Unaccounted GCRs -- 79 --Para 98

The Committee noted that Revenue Collectors in Tano North and Wenchi District Assemblies failed to present 79 value books (GCRs). Out of these Wenchi recorded 38 GCRs while Tano North did not account for 41 GCRs. Appendix G2 as attached provides details of the offending Assemblies.

Management of Wenchi and Tano North accounted for all the 79 GCRs upon a follow up visit of the Audit team who verified and cleared the Assemblies.

12.3 Uncollected Revenue -- GH¢49,200.00 Para 103

The Auditor General reported that Asutifi South and Techiman North

District Assemblies in the Brong Ahafo Region contravened Regulation 17 (a) and 19 of the FAR and Part 1, Regulation 2(a) of the Financial Memoranda for MMDAs by failing to collect a total amount of GH¢49,200.00 accruing to their Assemblies from property owners and business operators during the year under review.

The Committee noted during its sitting that only GH¢1,800.00 has been recovered from Techiman North with an outstanding balance of GH¢2,100.00 while Asutifi South could not collect for GH¢45,300.00 owed by 332 property rate defaulters. The Committee further noted that the Assemblies could not recover the amounts owed them because their finance and adminis- tration sub-committee did not put measures in place to recover the amount from the defaulters.

Recommendation

The Committee disagrees with the situation where MMDAs do not ensure that proper mechanisms are put in place to prevent the occurances of these infractions which could have great impact on their revenues projections and collections thus affecting their planned programmes.

The Committee therefore recommends that Management of the

Assemblies involved should ensure that by-laws on revenue generation and billing of commercial activities are strictly enforced: while all measures including legal means are engaged to recover the outstanding amounts from Revenue Collectors or face surcharge themselves.

12.4 Payments not accounted for

GH¢234,670.98

While Regulation 39 (1) requires a head of department to ensure that moneys are utilised in a manner that secures both optimum value for money and the intention of Parliament, Regulation 39 (2)(c) also enjoins all heads of departments to ensure that payments are duly authenticated and payable. Therefore, all payments should be substantiated and supported with invoices, receipts and other relevant documents.

T h e C o m m i t t e e , h o w e v e r, observed that seven (7) Assemblies made payments totaling GH¢234, 670.98 without any documentary evidence to validate the payments

made during the year. The breakdown of the amount is shown in Table 5.

It emerged during the Committee's deliberations that the Finance Officers of the Assemblies found culpable of this irregularity could not present payment vouchers to substantiate the payments. Management of the Assemblies cited poor filing system and absence of Finance Officers during the time of the audit as some of the reasons why the payments could not be substantiated during the audit.

The Committee noted that out of the total GH¢234,670.98 unaccounted payments, an amount of GH¢33,762.00 has been substan- tiated leaving an outstanding balance of GH¢200,908.98. The details are shown in Apendix G2 of 2016 Auditor-General Report. It is significant to note that amongst the Assemblies, Asunafo North, Dormaa East, Nkoranza and Pru managed to substantiate some of the payments made upon the invitation to appear before the Public Accounts Committee as shown in Table 5 below.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


Recommendation

The Committee, therefore, recommends that: Management of the Assemblies should ensure that the amounts involved in the outstanding unsubstantiated payments are recovered from the Coordinating Directors and Finance Officers if no tangible evidence is provided to the Auditor-General to support the validity and authenticity of the payments made.

Management of the Assemblies should sanction the officers responsible for the infraction.

The Committee further urges all Assemblies to take note that henceforth,

posthumous regularisation of unsubstantiated payments would not be accepted. Once payments are not validated during the audit period, officers found culpable would be surcharged.

12.5 Unpresented Payment Vouchers -- GH¢87,284.41

It was reported that three Assemblies in the Brong Ahafo Region namely Asutifi South, Tano North and Wenchi District Assemblies violated Regulation 39 (2)(c) of the Financial Administration Regulations where heads of finance units did not ensure that transactions were properly authenticated to show the amounts are due and payable. There were no

evidence of Payment Vouchers (PVs) to support payments. So far, payments amounting to GH¢87, 284.41 were not substantiated with payment vouchers. Even at the time of public hearing the Assemblies did not make any effort to account for the amount.

Management of Wenchi District Assembly indicated to the Committee that so far, only two out of thirteen PVs have been retrieved. They informed the Committee that their inability to retrieve the remaining eleven PVs was due to an intermittent movement from the old office to a new office which resulted in a difficulty in locating the Payment Vouchers. They assured the Committee that they are still searching for the remaining 11 PVs. Tano North, however, indicated that all PVs were presented for audit as at the time of sitting; however, the Auditors had not received these PVs and could not confirm their claim.

Recommendation

The Committee considered their defence as untenable and demanded that Management should retrieve all outstanding PVs within one month and submit same to auditors for verification or be surcharged.

12.6 Payment for Fuel not Accounted for - GH¢59,770.60

Four Assemblies did not ensure that fuel purchases were lodged to provide a record on its utilisation. As a result, there was no record on the usage of the fuel amounting to

GH¢59,770.60.

Management of Sunyani Municipal, Tano North, Wenchi and Kintampo Assemblies all confirmed the use of fuel amounting to GH¢59,770.60. But at the time of sitting, only Sunyani Municipal accounted for fuel to the tune of GH¢11,779.00 leaving a balance of GH¢2,755.60 un- accounted. Kintampo North on their part informed the Committee that they had lodged in for the fuel, however, this was done after Auditors had exited, adding that the infraction occurred due to a mistake by officers handling the log book. The Committee did not take kindly to the submission.

12.7 Unrecovered Assembly Funds -- (Unpaid Advance) GH¢24,251.88 -- Paragraph 115

The Committee observed that advances amounting to GH¢24, 251.88 approved by three Assemblies under the salary advance remained unrecovered as at the period of Audit. According to the Auditor-General, the unrecovered salary advances were benefited by four staff of Asutifi South, four staff from Nkoranza South and nine others in Sunyani all amounting
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
of the Effutu Municipal Assembly due to its abysmal performance in both 2015 and 2016 fiscal years.
13.6 Unaccounted Payment-- GH¢274,918.89 -- Para144
The Committee noted that four Assemblies in the Central Region contravened Regulation 7(1)(a) and 2 of the PFMA (Act 921) and Part VI Regulation 39(1) and 39(2)(c) of the FARs by making expenditure to
the tune of GH¢274,918.89 without supporting documents.
A total payment of GH¢238, GH¢238,429.89 was made by Gomoa East and Upper Denkyira Assemblies while payments for fuel not accounted for amounted to GH¢36,489.00 in respect of Effutu and Upper DenkyiraWest Assem- blies.
The Committee was informed that during a second visit by auditors, some recoveries were made by these Assemblies as shown in Table 6 below:

So far, Gomoa East recovered GH¢153,798.30 out of GH¢212, 976.17 with a remaining unsub- stantiated balance of GH¢59,177.87. Upper Denkyira provided supporting documents for all GH¢25,453.72. These were verified and cleared by Audit officials. Upper Denkyira West was also cleared of an amount of GH¢6,984.00 in respect of fuel after

it submitted documentary evidence of purchase and utilisation of fuel.

Management of Effutu Municipal Assembly informed the Committee that the infraction was incurred by their predecessors and they were unable to substantiate the purchases and utilisation of fuel. The Assembly however, assured the Committee that

they have put in place measures to curtail the reoccurrence of such infraction by purchasing log books and training all drivers as well as transport officers in handling fuel purchase and usage.

Recommendation

The Committee is of the view that the absence or movement of a public officer to another office does not exonerate the officer from accounting for his or her stewardship. The Committee, therefore, recommends that the Effutu Assembly should invite the old Management to account for the fuel and that the Auditor-General should surcharge the officers directly involved with the stated amount to serve as deterrent to others.

14.0 Details of other Management Issues Raised - Western Region

Report of the Auditor-General stated that 10 Assemblies in the Western Region were found wanting of the financial laws and regulations as follows:

14.1 Unaccounted Revenue -- GH¢205,391.74 -- Para 315

It was observed that, a contracted revenue collection agent, Messrs

GoldStreet Real Estate Consult at Takoradi and some Revenue Collectors in Jomoro and Shama failed to account for an amount of GH¢205,392.70 belonging to the three Assemblies.

According to the Auditor General, this occurred as a result of negligence on the part of Finance Officers and Revenue Accountants to conduct weekly checks on payments to the Assemblies.

During the sitting, the Committee noted that out of GH¢15,609.50, Jomoro Assembly accounted for GH¢14,105.00 with an outstanding balance of GH¢1,504.50.

Takoradi and Shama informed the Committee that the unaccounted amounts recorded in the report were overstated by the Auditor-General. With respect to Takoradi, the correct figure is GH¢86,000.00 and not GH¢93,847.17 as recorded in the Report while in Shama the amount is GH¢65,921.00 and not the GH¢95,935.07 as stated in the Report.

This information was corroborated by Auditors and corrected as such. Takoradi recovered all the amount of GH¢86,000.00. This was verified and cleared by Auditors at the public sitting. Shama on their part made a recovery of GH¢44,920.00 leaving a balance of GH¢21,001.00. There-
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


fore, total unaccounted revenue stands at GH¢22,505.50 against Jomoro and Shama Assemblies.

Recommendation

The Committee was of the view that negligence by the Finance Officers and Revenue Collectors of the Assemblies constituted a breach of FAR 15 and therefore, recommends that officers involved in this act should be sanctioned in accordance with FAR 8(4) and that Management of the two Assemblies should apply every legal means to recover the outstanding amount from the persons directly responsible.

14.2 Unaccounted Value Books (GCRs) -- Para 317

Some Revenue Collectors at Ellembelle and Shama did not account for GCRs that were issued to them for revenue collection in breach of FAR 15 and 215 as reported by the Auditor-General.

During the public hearing, Ellembelle accounted for 12 GCRs out of 20. Shama, however, argued

that their unaccounted GCRs were 32 and not 37 as recorded in the report and Auditors agreed to the assertion. Shama recovered and accounted for 17 GCRs; 15 GCRs are yet to be accounted for.

Recommendation.

The Committee recommends that the outstanding 23 GCRs with Ellembelle and Shama Assemblies be accounted for in three weeks, or officers directly responsible be surcharged.

14.3 Unaccounted Payments --

GH¢445,294.00

The Auditor-General reported that contrary to FAR 38(1) and 39(2)(c), seven Assemblies could not account for various expenditures made totalling GH¢445,294.76 during its audit.

During the public hearing however, the auditors informed the Committee that upon a verification visit to these Assemblies various expenditures were substantiated as indicated below in Table 7 below:
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
books. Shama also recovered GH¢200.00 and has an outstanding balance of GH¢1,800.00.
The Committee was informed that the figure against Wassa East was typographically wrong. The amount was GH¢2,970.00 and not GH¢3,970.00 as captured in the Report. It, therefore, brought total unrecovered advances to GH¢70, 068.34. Total outstanding unrecovered advances now stand at
GH¢57,014.34.
The Committee expressed its dissatisfaction at the poor per- formance of Shama Assembly which has been cited in almost all the infractions that occurred in the Western Region. The Committee is equally dissatisfied with the performance of Takoradi Metro- politan Assembly for its performance considering the fact that it is the most experienced and leading Assembly in the Region.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that the three Assemblies involved should, within three weeks, come out with schedules for the recovery of all outstanding balances in their
respective Assemblies within six months. Also, Shama Assembly should stop payments of salary advances with effect from December 2018 until the entire outstanding advances are cleared. Furthermore, the Local Government Service should identify and sanction the officers directly responsible for negligence of duty.
15.0 Details of other Management Issues -- Volta Region
The Committee observed that compliance audit was conducted into the operations of twenty-five (25) Municipal and District Assemblies in the Volta Region. The Auditor- General made some adverse findings on some of the Assemblies as follows:
15.1 Unaccounted Revenue --
GH¢19,029.80
The Committee noted that Finance Officers and revenue superintendents of six Assemblies in the Volta Region were negligent in their duty to supervise Revenue Collectors; this paved way for Revenue Collectors to underpay their collections by GH¢19,029.80. Table 8 below presents the names of the Assemblies

with infractions made and recoveries made after the audit.

Three out of the six Assemblies namely; Ho West, Hohoe and South Tongu recovered all their revenues while Nkwanta South, Biakoye and

North Dayi Assemblies recovered part of the amounts due respectively.

Recommendation

The Committee gave the three defaulting Assemblies three weeks to

recover their outstanding balances failing which the Auditor-General should identify the officers involved and surcharge them with the amount involved for negligence of their duty. Furthermore, the Local Government Service should sanction the officers involved.

15.2 Unaccounted Payments -- GH¢180, 861.20 -- Para 289

The Committee again noted that contrary to Part 1X Regulation 7, 13 and 14 of Financial Memoranda which requires District Assemblies to support all payments with the relevant documents such as memos, invoices receipts, et cetera.

It emerged that eight Assemblies failed to provide evidence for goods and services supplied to the Assemblies worth GH¢180, 861.20.

The Auditor-General attributes this to failure on the part of Management. 15.3 Indebtedness of staff- GH¢115,237.50 -- Para 292

In his report, the Auditor-General informed the Committee that Management of ten (10) Assemblies in the Volta Region failed to ensure payment of rent by staff who occupied
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


official bungalows resulting in unsettled bills (rent) to these Assemblies to the tune of GH¢115,237.50. 15.4 Unaccounted Value Books

The Committee observed that revenue collectors in four Assemblies notably, Keta, North Dayi, Biakoye and Nkwanta South Assemblies failed to account for GCRs issued to them. This, the Committee noted, is a
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
16.1 Revenue not Accounted for
-- GH¢107,063.60
The Committee observed that five Assemblies failed to supervise Revenue Collectors leading to
revenues not accounted for amounting to GH¢107,063.60 in violation of Regulations 28 and 29 of Part VIII of the Financial Memoranda stipulating the examination of daily entries of Revenue Collectors cash books on daily bases.

16.2 Arreas of Revenue Collection -- GH¢273,167.77 --

The Committee observed that some Finance Officers and Finance and Administrative sub-committee members of two Assemblies namely, New Juaben, Birim and Atiwa failed to recover arrears of revenue to the tune of GH¢273,167.77.

The Committee observed that out of the total revenue of GH¢115,862.30

collected, Birim North Assemblies recovered only GH¢43,495.20. The remaining balance is a subject of contention at the court of adjudicature. Atiwa Assembly has, however, recovered all outstanding arrears of GH¢13,179.07. This was confirmed by the Auditors. New Juaben also recovered all GH¢27,126.40 revenue arrears in respect to property rates.

16.3 Unaccounted Revenue and Poor Control over Value books

It was observed in the Report that three Assemblies in the Eastern Region could not account for value books and market tickets. There was also no evidence of weekly review of revenue records to identify the withholding of value books by Revenue Collectors. The Assemblies therefore risk losing revenues by these practices.

Birim Central Assembly did not account for 115 market tickets and GCR as no submission was made. Denkyembour Assembly failed to account for 10 market tickets. However, 8 GCRs were accounted for at the Public hearing in Ho and submitted to Auditors for verification and confirmation.

Nsawam Adoagyiri accounted for sundry value books amounting to
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
16.5 Unrecovered Assembly Funds -- GHC125.713.78 -- Para175
The Committee observed that staff of seven Assemblies owed an amount of GH¢125,713.78 in respect of unpaid advances and rent.
17.0 Details of other Management Issues -- Greater Accra
For the year ended 31st December 2016, the Auditor-General conducted Compliance audits into the books and Accounts of sixteen (16) Assemblies in the Greater Accra Region. MMDAs with unresolved findings were invited and the issues raised by the Auditor-General were discussed at public sittings as follows:

17.1 Revenue Unaccounted for

-- GH¢167,564

The Auditor-General reported that twenty-one restroom operators in the Accra Metro violated Regulation 14 of the FAR, by failing to collect rest- room user fees to the Assembly while at other Assemblies, Revenue Collectors concealed 51 restroom user fees totaling GH¢167,564.12. It, however, emerged at the public hearing, that some recoveries were made before they appeared at the Committee.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.
17.2 Unaccounted Value Books (GCRs)
As at the period of Audit, two Assemblies, Ashiedu Keteke Sub- Metro and Ledzokuku-Krowor Municipal failed to account for a total
of 69 value books (GCRS) for audit purposes.
The Committee noted during the meeting that the two Assemblies were able to retrieve and submit to audit a total of 56 GCRs out of the 69.

Ashiedu-Keteke accounted for all five value books while Ledzokuku accounted for 56 out of 64 value books. The remaining eight (8) GCRs are yet to be accounted for by Ledzokuku.

17.3 Unaccounted Payments --

GH¢228,370.25

The Committee observed that four (4) Assemblies breached Regulation 39(1) and 39(2)(c) and contravened Part VI Regulation 11 of the Financial Memoranda for District Assemblies by paying an amount of GH¢228, 370.25 without the necessary supporting documents. As at the time of public sitting, Ashiedu Keteke Sub- Metro (AMA) recovered seven (7) Payment Vouchers with an amount of GH¢10,294.05. Ningo-Prampram also accounted for 60 PVs totaling GH¢170,088.97. These two Assemblies had their documents verified and cleared at the sitting. Ledzokuku-Krowor and Ga South still have unaccounted payments of GH¢34,386.59 and GH¢13.600.64 respectively.

Recommendation

The Committee recommends that Managers of the Municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies in default should render the necessary accounts within three weeks or be surcharged.

17.4 Unearned Salaries GH¢9,872.09 -- Paragraph 203 (wrongly captured as GH¢59,878.09)

The Committee noted that GH¢4,130.38 was credited to the bank accounts of two separated staff of Ashiedu Keteke Sub-Metro while some fourteen staff of Ablekuma Sub- Metro were wrongly credited with an amount of GH¢5,741.71.

The Auditor-General stated that this violation contravened Financial Administration Regulation (FAR) 298 (3b) as Management could not provide evidence to show that they had requested the banks to stop withdrawals from the Accounts.

Recommendation

The Committee recommends that the Assemblies involved should use legal means to recover the moneys wrongly paid.

18.0 General Observation and Recommendations

18.2 Unaccounted Fuel

The Committee observed that most of the Assemblies which failed to account for fuel did not have Log books and therefore could not indicate utilisation. Some Assemblies also indicated lack of capacity on the

part of drivers as reasons accounting for failure to log fuel.

The Committee recommends that the Local Government Service should endeavor to train and build capacity of drivers of MMDAs in respect of the importance and usage of log books in order to put an end to the perennial challenge Auditors go through to ensure fuel accountability. Also, the Local Government Service should test the ability of drivers to read and write as a requirement prior to engagement.

18.3 Unaccounted payments

The Committee noted that some Finance Officers and Revenue Collectors do not present documents or evidence to substantiate payments and financial transactions during audit periods but managed to substantiate some of the payments, upon invitation to appear before the Public Accounts Committee.

The Committee cautions all Assemblies to desist from this practice and be informed that henceforth such practice will no longer be tolerated as the Auditor-General is poised to surcharge officers for non- compliance.

19.0 General Observation

The Committee observed that the Report of the Auditor-General on District Assemblies for the 2016 financial year as submitted to the House is the fair representation of the financial performance of Metro- politan, Municipal and District Assemblies for the year 2016.

7.0 Recommendation

In conclusion, the Committee recommends to the House to adopt its Report on the Report of the Auditor-General on the Accounts of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies for the financial year ended 31 December 2016 in accordance with Order 165(3) of the Parliament of Ghana.

Respectfully submitted.
Chairman of the Committee (Mr James K. Avedzi) 11:23 a.m.


[SPACE FOR APPENDIX - PAGE 50 - 11.23 A.M] [SPACE FOR APPENDIX - PAGE 51 - 11.23 A.M]
MR FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:34 a.m.
Yes, Hon Ranking Member.
Mr Kofi Okyere-Agyekum (NPP -- Fanteakwa South) 11:34 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to second the Motion for the adoption of the PAC Report on the accounts of District Assemblies of Ghana for the year ended 31st December, 2016.
In supporting the Motion, I wish to particularly focus on the issue of internally generated funds. In the year under review, GH¢256 million was internally generated. This is only about 10 per cent increase on the figure for 2015. Considering the rate of inflation and other factors, the Committee is of the view that there should be more effort involved in increasing internally generated funds. We noted that as a result of several irregularities and harsh irregularities where imprest collected by officers for jobs are not accounted for; where revenues due to the Assemblies are not collected; and in situations where they are even collected but the revenues are not accounted for.
Mr Speaker, if we go to the area of procurement, we would find out that a lot of procurements were made without the necessary supporting documents for auditors to vouch the appropriateness of those procure- ments.
Mr Speaker, if we move to the area of taxation, we would realise that a lot of the Assemblies do not withhold taxes for payments they make and even where they withhold the taxes, they do not transmit the taxes to the central Government; they consume the tax revenues.
Mr Speaker, another area of concern is payroll irregularities where for months, staff who have either not worked or are separated are paid. We would also realise a big issue of staff of Assemblies who occupy bungalows and quarters of the Assemblies but the Assemblies fail to take rent from those staff.
Again, occupants of a lot of the Assemblies' commercial stores in the various markets do not pay rent, and the Assemblies seem powerless to do anything about it. Where they also collect rent, the rent collectors fail --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:34 a.m.
Hon Member, did you say the Assemblies are powerless? Are they powerless?
Mr Okyere-Agyekum 11:34 a.m.
Mr Speaker, they appear to be powerless because the people are in the stores, but do not pay rent, and they are not doing anything about it.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:34 a.m.
So they are unwilling to collect the rent, but they have all the powers behind them.
Mr Okyere-Agyekum 11:34 a.m.
Very well, Mr Speaker. They are unwilling to collect the rent.
Mr Speaker, all these infractions lead to a lot of revenue leakage. That is, probably, the reason why the revenue growth for the year 2015 to 2016 was only nine per cent.
Mr Speaker, as it is said in our Report, we could sense a lack of commitment and interest among the management of the Assemblies to make sure that these irregularities are corrected.
Therefore, we strongly recommend that henceforth, all such irregularities should be surcharged to the officers involved, and we should make sure that they do not use the funds of the Assemblies to pay for such surcharges.
Mr Speaker, with these few words, I second the Motion for our Report to be adopted.
Thank you.
Question proposed.
Mr Ras Mubarak (NDC— Kumbugu) 11:34 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I am very grateful for the opportunity to comment on the Report of the PAC on the Auditor-General's account of District Assemblies for the year ending 31st December, 2016.
If we go through the various lists of infractions in the Report, they have happened time and again. It is for this reason that there is a certain sense of lack of appreciation of the work of the Auditor-General and that of the
PAC.
Mr Speaker, I find it extremely surprising that we have people at the Assembly level who are supposed to ensure that there is no revenue leakage, but year in and year out we see these infractions reflected in the report of the Auditor-General. We need to encourage the various Assemblies to retrain their people so that they get familiar with the relevant legislations that govern their work. I know that they actually know it; except that there is a certain obliviousness to what they ought to
Mr Ras Mubarak (NDC— Kumbugu) 11:43 a.m.
do, having trained or retrained them on the relevant provisions of the law.
Mr Speaker, in my view, we also need to put a lot of emphasis on punishment since they still do it because they know they would get away with it. When they appeared before the Committee last year, if you examined the way many of them even responded to the issues, it is as if it is not a big deal; it is just some GH¢7,000 or GH¢10,000 that they could not account for. That is completely intolerable.
Mr Speaker, we would see a lot pf revenue leakages at the district level even more than at the central Government level. There are a lot of acts of corruption going on down there because we remit finances to these agencies with very little or no supervision, and they tend to get away with it.
It is also largely because the work of the PAC takes a while. For instance, we are in 2019, and we are looking at the 2016 Report. By the time we look at the report, some of these people who might have been responsible for these infractions would have gone on retirement or are even too frail to appear before the PAC to answer questions.
So, there is a need to put a certain sense of urgency in respect of when the report appears, when our work
is done, and when our recommendations are forwarded.
Mr Speaker, one of the challenges that the Auditor-General's Department has complained about is the fact that they mostly do not get recommendations of Parliament on their report. So, I would use this opportunity to urge the leadership of the Committee that whenever we conduct our work, we should forward same to the Auditor-General.
However, critical to all of the things that we are doing, is the issue of following up on the recommendations. This is because, if we recommend that people should be surcharged and there is no follow-up three or six months down the line, the same people would come back in the next report and the infractions would be just about the same. Our job, as a Committee, is to hold the Executive to account for the revenue that Parliament approves, but it behoves the Executive to ensure that they follow through some of the recom- mendations that we make.
Mr Speaker, I also encourage that we even need to look into Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects. There are a lot of projects that are being undertaken by various MDAs
that are PPP related; but very often, we do not see the Auditor-General audit some of these.

So going forward, it would be nice to have all these projects encapsulated in the Auditor-General's Report.

Mr Speaker, on this note, I would thank you for the opportunity.
Mr Kennedy K. Kankam (NPP--Nhyiaeso) 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the Motion on the Floor.
Mr Speaker, while the Committee did its work, one thing that I observed was that most of the institutions failed to submit the statement of their financial position to the Auditor- General for them to work on.
If we go to page 3, paragraph 7.11, subparagraph 2, the Committee observed that 38 Assemblies, which constitute almost 17.6 per cent of the various District Assemblies, defaulted in submitting the statements of their financial position to the Auditor- General for them to be worked on.
We urge the Auditor-General and those in authority to compel these
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
Hon Member, which section did you refer to? Which part of the Act do you think should be amended?
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, my concern is on the way the Assemblies pay the various internal auditors. Most of the internal auditors are paid by the Assembly, whose payment vouchers are signed by the very people they are supposed to audit. So in this case, they are not independent. They are dependent on the people they are supposed to audit.
So, they cannot express an independent opinion most of the time. It is high time that we migrated them from the various District Assemblies, perhaps, for them to draw their money from the Consolidated Fund or from a special fund, so that they can express their opinion because sometimes they are victimised if --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
Is there an Internal Audit Unit at KMA?
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, no, across all the units, we observed that
-- 11:43 a.m.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
I agree; but because you are a member of KMA, I would want to hold you down to matters in KMA.
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, what I am talking about is not about KMA. It is about the Report that has been presented to Parliament, and I am talking about an observation. It is a general observation that cuts across almost all the District Assemblies.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
Yes, but the Report talks about KMA here, on page 10. Your internal audit unit, did they raise any matters for the Assembly to discuss? You are a member of the KMA.
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, if you look at what has been stated on page 10 as far as KMA is concerned, there is a problem with the internal audit unit of KMA, and some of us raised that issue at the meetings. We talk about this every time we talk about auditing in Ghana.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
But what about the Assembly itself?
The KMA Members of Parliament, I am interested in you because you are accused by your Presiding Member, and none of you has responded publicly. Meanwhile, the misinformation is going haywire.
You are not spending officers at the Assembly, are you?
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, no, we are not spending officers.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
Yes, and you are accused of misapplying your Common Fund, when you do not have access to the account. How can you misapply? That is all over the media; yet, you are not responding to it.
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, perhaps, you have not read what some of us have said because we have responded to it adequately.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:43 a.m.
Alright, I have not seen any of your responses, but the issues raised here show clearly that the Assembly is underperforming; revenue collection, taking huge loans they are not servicing, and putting the whole local government system under a huge debt.
I want to hear you on that.
Mr Kankam 11:43 a.m.
Mr Speaker, if you read the Report on KMA, Members of Parliament, as you said, are not spending officers of the Assembly. It is the District Coordinating Director and those who are in finance positions who are supposed to spend those moneys at KMA. So if somebody accuses Members of Parliament that we are misappropriating funds at KMA, I think that person is not being fair, the person is making propaganda or misleading the public.
Mr Kankam 11:53 a.m.


As far as Hon Members of Parliament who fall under KMA are concerned, anytime, we want to spend any money, we just write to the Mayor or the Coordinating Director of KMA. The Mayor goes through the process and decides whether to approve or disapprove the amount of money that some of us propose, that they should use for works in our various constituencies. If somebody misappropriates funds somewhere, it would not be Hon Members; it would rather be the spending officers.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:53 a.m.
Very well, you may conclude your debate.
Mr Kankam 11:53 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, I would repeat that we should try as much as possible and look at the internal audit unit of this country. If the Act is not amended, it would affect the country's revenue mobilisation.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for giving me the opportunity.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:53 a.m.
Yes, Hon Ntow?
Mr Mathias K. Ntow (NDC -- Aowin) 11:53 a.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion.
Mr Speaker, I have some general observations to make as far as the Report and others are concerned. The issue is not with the Report under discussion now. But when we take the Auditor-General's reports over the years, certain issues have been recurring; for example, fuel purchases, as has been mentioned in the Report of 2016. It is the duty of the accountants to ensure that any time fuel is purchased, all the necessary documents are collected from the fuel station and well recorded in the log books.
Mr Speaker, if you read many of the reports of the Auditor-General, it would surprise you to find that even the keeping of logbooks in Government vehicles is not done. Sometimes, at some of our sittings, the Chairman of the Committee may call on either the directors, MCEs or DCEs to ask the drivers to produce the logbooks for us to be sure that indeed there is a logbook in the car.
Mr Speaker, it seems most of our officers refuse to accept the fact that the vehicles they use are not theirs; they belong to the State and therefore, they must be kept as such.
Another issue is about withholding taxes. Mr Speaker, a supplier may send items to a particular district
assembly or metropolitan assembly and they may be required to withhold the tax belonging to the State.
Sometimes, some of the account officers take the moneys and refuse to pay. Even if they would pay at all, they do not pay at the right time. They would wait till they are cited in the Auditor-General's Report when they hear that the PAC has summoned them to appear before it before they would pay; it is not right.
Mr Speaker, this country has good laws that when they are religiously obeyed, the country would be a wonderful place to live in. Yet, some of us; the leaders or people who are supposed to ensure the imple- mentation of these laws refuse to do that and it brings about the many infractions that the Auditor-General puts in their reports. It is incumbent on officers to keep records of all the transactions that take place in the various Assemblies.
Mr Speaker, finally, it is observed that some officers who commit infractions are transferred to other places, especially with the Ghana Education Service. With some of the reports that have been brought before the Committee, maybe, somebody is an accountant in Osu, when he commits an infraction, he is
then transferred to the Volta Region. I am happy that the Auditor-General has now indicated that any officer who is found to have committed an infraction would be required to go back and answer to those queries.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, there is always an exit conference. So it behoves officers to ensure that they discuss any infractions that have been observed by the Auditor-General before it appears in the main report. If they are not able to justify their actions, then it is not a matter of transfer, but that person must be made to pay the amount of money that has been misappropriated.
I believe when we allow these laws to work, it would go a long way to help this country move forward as far as the development of these Assemblies is concerned.
Mr Speaker, I thank you for allowing me to comment on the Report.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 11:53 a.m.
Yes, Hon Member for Kade?
Mr Kwabena Ohemeng- Tinyase (NPP -- Kade) 11:53 a.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
I stand to contribute to the Motion on the acceptance of your Committee's Report on the District Assemblies for the period 2016.
Mr Kwabena Ohemeng- Tinyase (NPP -- Kade) 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, in doing so, I recall that over the past two years that your Committee has had the opportunity to look at some of these reports that we have contributed to, the infractions that we have observed have been recurring. It means that no matter the sanctions that are in place, no matter the recommendations that are made, the people still stick to what they do.
My candid opinion is that, it is not because they are inefficient, it is not because they are not properly trained, but that there is a malicious intention to do wrong. It is sad to note that in most of the cases, for those who commit these irregularities, the only punishment that is meted to them is to be transferred to another district.
Sometimes, we wonder what happens at the Accountant-General's Department whereby when officers commit grievous irregularities that are punishable by law; they are not punished, but they are transferred to another area to do same.
So, on this note, I would recommend that the Accountant- General must sit up and mete out proper and efficient punishments to culprits of these irregularities to act as -- It is the Auditor-General who recommends that the officials of the Accountant-General's Department
who are the account officers at the District Assemblies are the people who connive to commit these irregularities. So after the recommendation, the sanctions to this effect must come from the Accountant-General. It has to be severe to serve as a deterrent otherwise, we would forever and ever observe some of these things.
Mr Speaker, secondly, on the commitment of the offence, I believe that there is a general notion that whatever happens cannot be uncovered. So, when it is even uncovered, people still believe that they could go in at another time and get away with the offence. We may have to look at what happens after the submission of the PAC Report, and ensure that the necessary re- commendations that are made are implemented to the fullest. It is as if your Committee's Report, when read here, heard by all and approved by all, in the end, is unattended to, and left to rot on the shelves of some areas. I believe we would have to take a second look at that one too.

I believe there is the need for intensive in-service training for some of these officials. This is because some of them also do it ignorantly. They are not masters of the Financial Management Act. They violate some

of the auditing and the accounting rules basically because they do not have the in-depth knowledge that is required for them to do the task that is ahead of them.

Mr Speaker, as a nation, a lot of money is going down the drain and if we take this Report and look at the sum total of the infractions that have been observed, I can say that because of the Committee, some people correct the infractions before they appear before your Committee. Even with those who are not able to correct these infractions, the sum total of it is enough to support the national programmes that we are seriously pursuing.

Mr Speaker, on this note, I call for stringent compliance with the laws, the proper supervision of the officials and the severe punishment of culprits to help save the nation from this bleeding which is a canker that we need to solve.
Mr Ahmed Ibrahim (NDC -- Banda) 12:03 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker for the opportunity to make a few comments in support of the Motion to adopt the Report.
Mr Speaker, to begin with, I must commend your Public Accounts Committee for doing a very good job. I have gone through the Report, and having taken a critical look at the appendices, I could see that almost about five out of the ten regions were able to spend money more than their income. The Upper West Region had an excess of expenditure over income. The Upper East Region, the Eastern Region, Brong Ahafo Region and Ashanti Region had same.
Mr Speaker, if we are to look at the regions that were able to generate much, the Ashanti Region was one of them. They were able to generate over GH¢35 million. However, their expenditure was far more than the GH¢35 million and this is a cause for worry to me. The Brong Ahafo Region was able to generate about GH¢19 million. However, their expenditure exceeded that. The Upper East Region, Eastern Region and Ashanti Region had the same issue.
Mr Speaker, this calls for questioning. This is because if a region was able to generate only about GH¢2 million and they were able to spend within that amount and another region was able to generate about GH¢35 million and their expenditure exceeded the GH¢35 million, then I
Mr Matthew Nyindam (NPP - - Kpandai) 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I just want to say something very little. If we look at the Report, there is one thing that runs through it: expenditure not supported by relevant documents, and I really have a problem. This is because if we look at some instances, after the engagement with the various Assemblies, they come back with some kind of documentation to support their expenditure. But my issue with the Public Accounts Committee, -- maybe not demanding for answers right away -- is it that most of the Assemblies do not have the capacity, the staff strength or is it that the ability of most of the accounts officers is not up to date?
If we have a problem with the manpower, I think that recom- mendation must be that we should empower or try to build the capacities of some of the finance officers. This is because some of these things do not speak well of the various Assemblies that we have. So I want to urge the Public Accounts Committee to look into the capacity of most of these finance officers.
12. 13 p. m.
Mr Speaker, secondly, I want to task the Public Accounts Committee that they should let us know some of these Assemblies that are also doing well, so that they would also be happy that, at least, they have been able to perform.
The fact that this House has recognised that they are doing very well, would serve as some kind of motivation for them to keep doing the best. So that those who are not doing well, just like we are talking about, and would continue to talk about them would sit up.
Mr Speaker, with these few words, I thank you for the opportunity.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Hon Members, before I put the Question, I would like to raise this issue. The Report always talks about expenditure; I wish that the Public Accounts Committee would, in the next year, or in considering the next Report, look at the potential revenue we are failing to collect.
I cannot see for the life of me, why with respect to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), Tema Metropolitan Assembly (TMA) and the Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, we should be
Mr Avedzi 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, if I should make a point; the Auditor- General usually does this type of audit which we call financial audit. They do not do performance audit aside this one. They could decide to choose an agency or assembly to do a performance audit.
Mr Speaker, what you are talking about is performance audit but this audit report is financial audit; what they have collected, what has been given to them and how they have spent it; and whether they have complied with the law. That is it. But they could do a performance audit to find out how much an agency or assembly is supposed to collect; how much has been collected and why. That would then be a separate Report that we could discuss. But this one is limited to only Financial Audit and that is why the Report is—
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Have we had any performance audit on the District Assemblies before?
Mr Avedzi 12:03 p.m.
No, we have not.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
That is exactly my point. We should focus on the performance audit also.
Yes, Hon Member for Effutu?
Mr Afenyo-Markin 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I believe the Hon Chairman of the Committee misconstrued your advice. All that you are saying is that in spite of the Common Fund that is given them, they also have IGF. When they bring the audit, we should also look at the target; how much they have been able to achieve. That is the point of Mr Speaker. This has nothing to do with performance and all that.
Mr Speaker, I remember raising such a matter but you know how the practice is; sometimes, it may not sink so well. So, Mr Speaker, let us take that on board; I am a member of the Committee. We do not have to challenge Mr Speaker. When Mr Speaker gives advice, we take it on board, so that in subsequent Committee work, we consider it. Why do we want to debate Mr Speaker on this matter?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
It is all right; thank you.
I raised the matter and I am done. I did not intend this as a debatable topic. With all due respect, I—
Mr Avedzi 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, please, I have not challenged you. Why does the Hon Member make this argument? What kind of behaviour is that?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Hon Afenyo-Markin—
Mr Avedzi 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I do not believe that we should tolerate such behaviour in the House. I have not challenged you. I said that what Mr Speaker is asking is going to be a separate Report that would be done by the Auditor-General. This Report is limited to only financial audit. I am an expert; I am a financial person and I am telling him so he should take it. I am not challenging Mr Speaker.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
All right, thank you very much.
I want to see something in the financial audit area so that we could challenge our MMDAs to perform. That is all that I want. We want to see them generate the revenue rather than relying on the—
Question put and Motion agreed to.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Item numbered 6?
Mr Nyindam 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we would go for item numbered 8 on page 4 of the Order Paper.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Yes, item numbered 8, Motion, by the Hon Chairman of the Committee.
Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker—
Alhaji Muntaka — rose —
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Hon Chairman, you would hold on.
Yes, Hon Leader?
Alhaji Muntaka 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Report on the Petroleum Fund is a very important matter. And it would not be fair to this House that this is taken when neither the Hon Minister for Finance nor any of his Deputies are here.
Mr Speaker, this is because who is going to implement the recommendations that would be made? They are not here! So, Mr Speaker, the Majority Leadership must get one of them to be here before we take the Report. The Hon First Deputy Majority Whip must call another Business; we cannot take this Report when the Ministers involved are not here. Who is going to take the recommendations?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Please, resume your seats.
Yes, Hon First Deputy Majority Whip?
Mr Nyindam 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker — [Interruption] —
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Hon Chairman for Finance Committee, you are out of order.
Mr Nyindam 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it would have been nice if any of the Ministers were here. The Motion is to be taken by the Hon Chairman of the Committee. That is what the Motion says and there is nothing that has to do with the Hon Minister for Energy.
Yes, it is true that they are in charge of the Ministry and that is why I say that if they were here, it would add value. I am not underrating what my Hon Colleague said; I am not
saying he should not call for the Hon Minister but I believe that since the Hon Chairman of the Committee is here, and he is capable of dealing with the Motion, we should allow the Motion to be taken.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr Richard Acheampong 12:03 p.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
If we read through the Report — [Interruption.] I am a member of the Committee.
We have raised critical issues which the Hon Minister or any of the Deputies should be here and respond to. We cannot be here and be speaking to ourselves without any recommendations or somebody doing the implementation on our behalf.
So, one of the Hon Ministers should be here to respond to issues that we are going to raise because if we read through the Report, especially when it comes to the transfer of Sinking Fund, they cap it to GH¢300 million. They should give us the reasons they did that. Who is going to respond to this document?
Mr Speaker, like my Hon Chief Whip said, respectfully, one of them should be here, listen to the debate, and, at least, when it comes to the
implementation of the recom- mendations, they would be in a better position to do those recom- mendations.
We cannot be speaking to ourselves and at the end of day, we close debate and that becomes the end of it all. Even at the Committee meeting, the Hon Minister himself was not there.
Some Hon Members —rose—
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:03 p.m.
Are you going to say something new?
Yes, Hon Chairman of the Committee, I would hear you.
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 12:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I have not heard any of my Hon Colleagues opposite refer us to any Standing Order which has been infringed upon.
Mr Speaker, what is before us is a Motion to be moved by the Hon Chairman of the Committee. At Committee, the Hon Ministers were invited, and all the concerns of Hon Members were raised and addressed. As a matter of fact, this Motion does not even continue with a resolution. There is no resolution to be passed; this is a simple Motion which has to be considered.
So, Mr Speaker, I do not believe Business in this House should be determined by the Hon Members opposite. We determine the order of Business, so if Leadership says this is the order of Business, then that is what we should do.
For the past two weeks, the Hon Minority Chief Whip has been absent. He comes in and when we are doing business --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:23 p.m.
Hon Member, you are out of order. You are directly attacking the Leader because he raised a procedural matter. Where he was is none of your business. He sought permission to be absent.
Yes, Hon Minority Leader, I want to hear you.
Mr Iddrisu 12:23 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Minority Chief Whip has raised an important issue and the determination and ruling on the matter rests in your hands. This House as an organ of State is largely responsible for the exercise of oversight of financial matters and more importantly, matters that relate to the management of petroleum funds for this country.
We all went learning from Norway, Nigeria and other jurisdictions on how we should ensure judicious and
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:23 p.m.
Order! Order! Hon Members, I have listened to and heard the Leaders and that is sufficient.
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:23 p.m.
Hon First Deputy Majority Whip, do you want to say anything more?
Mr Nyindam 12:23 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I have listened to the Hon Minority Leader and he just echoed what I said earlier. It would be appropriate, and I agree. If the Hon Minister is here, it would not add value to the debate we would have. The Minister's absence does not negate whatever we would do. It is our oversight responsibility as Members of Parliament (MP), and this particular Report we are about to talk about is the Chairman's Report.
Like the Hon Chairman rightly said, we would not move any Resolution
today. That is the work of the Minister. So, today, like I said earlier, we cannot and would not step down this particular Motion, just because the Hon Minister for Energy or Minister for Finance is not around.
This is a House of record and for that matter, all sentiments and issues that would be raised on this Floor are out there in the public. So, the Minister for Energy or Minister for Finance, could have details of whatever we would say here and would respond appropriately to.
Mr Speaker, I therefore, urge you to let the debate continue.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:23 p.m.
Hon Members, an objection is raised by the Hon Minority Chief Whip to a Motion to be moved by the Committee Chairman. The Motion, if you read, is:
“That this Honourable House adopts the Report of the Finance Committee on the Reconciliation Report on the Petroleum Holding Fund for the year 2018”.
I tried to find out whether Hon Members have copies and I am advised that Members have been given copies. I looked at my copy of
the Report and it says under the purposes of the Report on page 2, paragraph 3.0, that the Minister is required to give a Report to Hon Members of Parliament in accordance with Act 815 on the Petroleum funds. So, the Minister did his duty by submitting his Report to Parliament.
As advised by a former Clerk, plenary work is a public show but the real work of Parliament is done in Committee. When Parliament received the Report, we referred it to our Committee on Finance to examine it and give us their views on the Report. This is an internal Report from our Committee to which we referred the Minister for Finance's Report.
So, at this point, I do not believe that the Hon Minister for Finance or any of his deputies must necessarily be present. I, therefore, direct the Hon Chairman of the Committee to present the Report.
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 12:23 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am grateful.
On page 4 of the Order Paper, we have items numbered 8 and 9 and the Report before us captures both, so I would move both and present the Report.
Chairman of the Committee (Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah) 12:23 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to move, that this Honourable House adopts the Report of the Finance Committee on the Annual Report on the Petroleum Funds for the 2018 Fiscal Year.
Mr Speaker, I beg to move, that this Honourable House adopts the Report of the Finance Committee on the Reconciliation Report on the Petroleum Holding Fund for the year
2018.
In so doing, I present your Committee's Report.
1.0 Introduction
Further to the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the year ended 31st December, 2019, the 2018 Annual Report on the Petroleum Funds was first presented to the House pursuant to Section 48 of the Petroleum Revenue Manage- ment Act, 2011 (Act 815) as amended by Act 893.
The 2018 Reconciliation Report on the Petroleum Holding Fund was also presented to the House on Monday, 8th April, 2019 pursuant to Section 15 of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815) as amended by Act 893.
The reports were referred to the Finance Committee for consideration and report in accordance with article 179 of the 1992 Constitution, and Orders 140(5) and 169 of the Standing Orders of the House.
The Committee met and considered the Report with a Deputy Minister for Finance, Hon. Charles Adu Boahen, and officials from the Ministry of Finance, Bank of Ghana, Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC), Volta River Authority, Ghana Revenue Authority, Ghana National Petroleum Cor- poration (GNPC), KOSMOS Energy, Ghana National Gas Company, Tullow Oil Company and Controller and Accountant-General's Department and reports as follows:
2.0 References
The Committee referred to the following documents:
1. The 1992 Constitution;
2. The Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act
815) as amended by Act 893); and
3. The Standing Orders of Parliament.
3.0 Purposes of the Reports
The purpose for submitting the 2018 Annual Report on the Petroleum Funds is to comply with section 48 of Act 815 which mandates the Minister for Finance to submit to the House audited financial statements of the previous year which includes the:
(i) receipts and transfers to and from the Petroleum Holding Fund,
(ii) deposits into and withdrawals from the Ghana Stabilisation Fund (GSF) and the Ghana Heritage Fund (GHF), and
(iii) Balance Sheet, including a note listing the qualifying instruments of the Ghana Petroleum Funds.
The 2018 Annual Report on the Petroleum Funds covers receipts and payments made to the Petroleum Holding Fund up to September, 2018
The purpose of the 2018 Reconciliation Report on the
Petroleum Holding Fund is also to comply with section 15 of Act 815 which provides that not later than the end of the first quarter of each year after the commencement of this Act, the Hon Minister for Finance should reconcile the accrual total petroleum receipts and the Annual Budget Funding Amount of the immediately preceding year and report on same to Parliament. The report covers receipts and payments made to the Petroleum Holding Fund for the entire year.
4.0 Observations
4.1 Developments in the Upstream Petroleum Sector in 2018
The Committee observed that production operations on the three producing fields -- Jubilee, Sankofa Gye-Nyame, and Tweneboa- Enyenra- Ntomme (TEN) -- were stable within the year, notwithstanding the planned shutdowns associated with the Jubilee FPSO, Turret Remediation Project (TRP). There was, however, relatively low production from the Jubilee Field as a result of three (3) planned shutdowns to resolve the damaged turret bearing on the Jubilee FPSO. The completion of the second phase of the TRP to stabilise the turret bearing helped to improve production. The FPSO Kwame

Nkrumah was successfully rotated to its permanent heading of 360 degrees.

The TEN and Jubilee Field Partners also successfully completed the installation and commissioning of the TEN-Jubilee interconnection pipelines in the first half of the year. The pipelines are to enable gas transfer between the two fields. Furthermore, on the TEN Field, a new producer well, NT05-P, was brought on-stream in August 2018, while EN02-P and EN08-P wells began water production in Sep- tember, 2018.

The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and its Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) Partners (Eni and Vitol) successfully achieved technical first gas from the Sankofa Gye-Nyame (SGN) Field.

GNPC signed a Petroleum Agreement (PA) with ExxonMobil over the Deep Water Cape Three Points (DWCTP) Block, subject to parliamentary ratifications. In line with the local content legislation, ExxonMobil has selected Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL) as its indigenous partner.

The Petroleum (Exploration and Production) (General) Regulations, 2018 (L.I. 2359) was passed into law
Chairman of the Committee (Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah) 12:23 p.m.
4.3 Allocation of the 2018 Petroleum Receipts
The 2018 petroleum receipts were allocated based on the provisions of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 201 l (Act 815) as amended (by Act 893).
A total amount of US$977.12 million from Petroleum Receipts was allocated to GNPC as Equity Financing Cost, and its share of the net Carried and Participating Interest, ABFA and the Ghana Petroleum Funds. Details of the allocation is shown on Table 2 as follows:

4.4 Utilisation of the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA)

The Committee was informed that for the year 2018, a total amount of GH¢1,546,376,951 was programmed

for ABFA, with GH¢463,913,085 being for Goods and Services and GH¢l,082,463,866 for CAPEX. The outturn was GH¢827,653,566.25 giving a variance of GH¢718,723,384.75 as follows:

Table 3 --- Utilisation of the ABFA as at Septmeber, 2017

4.5 Balance on the ABFA Account

The Committee observed that the opening balance on the ABFA Account was GH¢400,914,441. The amount also represent the unspent allocation to the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) in 2017. The actual ABFA receipts during the year under review was GH¢1,079,031,436.26. A total of GH¢827,653,566.25 was spent during the year, leaving a balance of GH¢652,292,311 at the end of the year.

The Committee noted that the utilised amount of GH¢827.65 million represents 76.70 per cent of total ABFA receipts and that was in accordance with the provisions of section 21(4) of the PRMA. The amount utilised includes Goods and Services of GH¢421.03 million and CAPEX of GH¢406.62 million.

4.6 Non-disbursement of GH¢400 Million

In response to whether the 2017 allocation of GH¢400 million has been disbursed as required, the Ministry said that it was yet to. It explained that the current Government procurement procedure for capital assets creates undue delays. As a result, the Ministry was unable to timeously process related payments

before the repeal of the 2017 Appropriations Act. Unfortunately, the disbursements under the US$400 million expenditure were also not captured in the 2018 Appropriations Act.

The Ministry of Finance therefore opined that there is the need for the Ministry of Finance to come to Parliament to seek approval in order to effect the required payments. It assured the Committee that very soon a request would be made to Parliament in this regard.

The Committee was informed that the Ministry of Finance further intends to review the procurement processes in order to address the issue of procurement delays.

4.7 Performance of the Ghana Petroleum Funds

The Committee was informed that as at 31st December, 2018, the Ghana Petroleum Funds (GPFs) balance stood at US$866.38 million. This is made up of US$485.17 million being the balance for the Ghana Heritage Fund (GHF) and US$ 381.20 million as balance for the Ghana Stabilisation Fund (GSF).

The total realised returns since inception of the GPFs to end December, 2018 was US$43.96 million, of which the GHF contributed

US$30.43 million and GSF contributed US$13.54 million.

4.8 No receipts from Gas Royalties

The Committee observed in paragraph 68 of the Report that during the period under review, there were no receipts from gas royalties in

2018.

The officials from GNPC explained that as part of the Agreement with the contractor for the Sankofa Fields, GNPC is to use its gas volumes to liquidate its debt. Due to this, GNPC has been assigning its volumes for the debt repayment.

The Committee recommended and GNPC agreed to furnish the Ministry of Finance details of these arrangement for inclusion in future reports to Parliament.

4.9 Transfer to the Sinking Fund

The Committee noted that in line with section 23 (4) of the PRMA, the GSF was capped at US$300 million in the 2018 Budget. A total of US$ 283.97 million was withdrawn from the GSF in 2018. This amount, which is in excess of the cap placed on the GSF in the 2018 Budget, was transferred into the Sinking Fund, in

accordance with Section 23(3) of the

PRMA.

4.10 Utilisation of GNPC's 2018 Allocations

GNPC received a total amount of US$286.60 million as at the end of December, 2018 (out of the amount of US$305.27 million). It is made up of the following:

US$73.80 million from the Jubilee Equity financing (share of development & production cost);

US$117.89 million from the TEN Equity financing (share of development & production cost);

US$53.11 million representing 30 per cent share of net proceeds of Jubilee crude revenue; and

US$41.80 million representing 30 per cent share of net proceeds of TEN crude revenue.

GNPC's Expenditure for the year 2018 amounted to US$350, 482,698.31. This covered Administrative expenditure, capital projects as well as other petroleum projects. Details of the expenditure is captured in Table 4 as follows:
Chairman of the Committee (Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah) 12:23 p.m.


4.11 Exploration & Development Projects

The Committee observed that a total amount of US$47.47 million of the amount received as GNPC's share of the 2018 Annual Petroleum Funds went to exploration & development projects and funding of

the Maritime Boundary Secretariat activities. The expenditure on exploration and petroleum projects included the Corporation's cost incurred on projects other than Jubilee and TEN such as OCTP, Voltaian Basin, North & South Tano Projects, etc. as shown in Table 5 below:

5.0 Conclusion

After careful consideration of the Report, the Committee is of the view that the Report generally complies with the requirements of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act 2011 (Act 815) as amended. It accounted for the use of the petroleum funds and the returns on the Ghana Stabilisation Fund and Ghana Heritage Fund.

The Committee accordingly recommends to the House to adopt this Report and adopt the 2018 Annual Report on the Petroleum Funds and the 2018 Reconciliation Report on the Petroleum Holding Fund.

Respectfully submitted.
Mr John A. Jinapor (NDC - Yapei/Kusawgu) 12:33 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to support the Motion.
Mr Speaker, as the Hon Chairman of the Committee rightly said, this is in fulfilment of section 15 of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815) as amended by Act 893. Indeed, this represents the eighth Report since we started producing oil.
We started commercial production in large quantities in the year 2011, but as I speak, total revenues accruing from petroleum resources amount to US$4,989 billion which is almost US$5 billion and represents an average of US$624 million per annum. In this amount, ABFA accounts for just 37 per cent, GNPC alone takes about 30 per cent while the rest goes to the Ghana Stabilisation and the Heritage Funds.
In the year 2016, we accrued GH¢977 million from petroleum
Mr John A. Jinapor (NDC - Yapei/Kusawgu) 12:43 p.m.
resources and in 2017, it shot up to GH¢2.3 billion. In 2018, it shot up to GH¢4.5 billion which indicates how much we have made from 2016, 2017 and 2018. Today, we have an average daily production of about 180,000 barrels per day up from the about 160 barrels we used to accrue previously.
Mr Speaker, if we compare this to Nigeria, Nigeria produces about 2 million barrels every day and this means that we are doing just about 10 per cent of what Nigeria produces. I am giving these statistics so that the country would know what is happening within the petroleum sector and be judicious when we are utilising these revenues.
Mr Speaker, it was stated in the Report that the Jubilee Partners delivered 27 billion standard cubic feet of raw gas and out of that, a bill of US$160 million was generated and nothing was paid. So, we consumed US$160 million of gas in 2018, yet, we have paid nothing out of it. This is in contravention as far as the Petroleum Revenue Management Act is concerned. The Act states that once the gas is taken, within two months, the money must be transferred into the Petroleum Holding Fund and that is being breached.
It is not just this year but last year, nothing was paid for the US$279 million dollars that was billed for the gas consumed and this was indicated in paragraph 14 of the 2017 Report. This shows that Ghana Gas and the gas infrastructure is in serious crisis and that is why, today, Ghana Gas has a debt of about US$800 million which is almost the same as the amount we took in terms of loans to put up that infrastructure.
This House and the nation have to be worried about this development because we cannot continue like that.
Mr Speaker, even more disturbing is how we use the ABFA. Since 2016, roads and physical infrastructure have accounted for 64 per cent of total ABFA allocation and the records clearly indicate that year-on-year, we spend a chunk of the money on real physical infrastructure projects. However, from 2017, the narrative changed.

Education alone was awarded 60.9 per cent of total budgetary allocation and it is captured as physical infrastructure and service delivery. So, they should go and look at how much we have spent on physical infrastructure. There was no capital expenditure for the education

priority area in the year 2017 from ABFA as all that money went into goods and services.

Mr Speaker, it is on this note that I make a clarion call to Government to consider, as a country, to have a forum so that we can determine how we will fund the Free SHS Programme as this is not sustainable.

A look at the Hon Chairman's Report --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:43 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Chairman, what is your objection?
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 12:43 p.m.
On a point of order. The Petroleum Revenue Management (PRMA) Act 2011 (Act 815) details how we should use our oil revenue. I would have loved to hear the Hon Member lead us to a violation of the PRMA.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:43 p.m.
Hon Member, you are out of order. His view is that it should be used differently. [Hear! Hear!]
Yes, go on.
Mr Jinapor 12:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
Even more disturbing is what the Hon Chairman rightly talked about in respect of the Stabilisation Fund and the Ghana Heritage Fund.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Minister for Finance has decided that, for the first time, he will move away from the convention and practice of allocating 70 per cent of the funds to the ABFA. What happened was that out of the revenues that accrue from our petroleum resources, after paying for Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC)'s carried and participating interest, the remainder
Mr Jinapor 12:43 p.m.
will then be apportioned among the ABFA, Ghana Heritage Fund and the Ghana Stabilisation Fund.
This is a table I prepared from the year 2011 to 2018; we have consistently allocated about 70 per cent of those funds to the ABFA so that we can monitor the use of that money. In the year 2018, the Hon Minister decided to allocate only US$235 million out of the US$977 million to ABFA and then pushed the rest into the Petroleum Holding Fund which constitutes the Ghana Stabilisation and Heritage Funds, and then went ahead to cap the Ghana Stabilisation Fund at 300 million and finally takes the chunk of the money to pay and service debts.
Mr Speaker, I hold a view that petroleum revenues and resources ought to be used judiciously for infrastructural projects, capital expenditure and not meant to be used for paying debts and deceiving us by changing the figures. If you look at the Report, clearly, we have an amount of US$866 million sitting in the Ghana Stabilisation and Heritage Fund. Over the past years, the total interest that has accrued on this amount is 5.8 per cent and it tells you that every year, we earn less than one per cent on these Funds. This is because the law restricts us from investing in a certain category.
I believe that the time has come for this House to push so that we could empower the Advisory and Investment Committees to consider the option of investing in assets that will give us some more revenue because if we are making less than one per cent on about US$866 million, it tells you that we clearly have a major problem.
Mr Speaker, based on this revenue, this is the time for us to push for the removal of the Special Petroleum Tax. We had huge revenue shortfalls and that was why I said that in the year 2016, we got just GH¢900 million. Today, reading the Hon Minister's budget, we are expecting GH¢6 billion from petroleum resources.
Ghana is a net exporter of petroleum to the tune of one billion and it therefore makes no sense to continue keeping the Special Petroleum Tax. It is time for the Hon Minister to ensure that the Special Petroleum Tax is withdrawn so that Ghanaians will have some relief, see some benefits and pass that to the ordinary Ghanaian.
Mr Speaker, it is quite obvious that today, we have three petroleum fields; the Jubilee, the Tweneboa-Enyenra, Ntomme (TEN) and the Sankofa Gye Nyame Fields. Indeed, we have three
Floating Petroleum Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels as I speak and it therefore tells you that a lot more is accruing into the Funds. The question the ordinary Ghanaian wants to ask is, what are we using these funds for?

Mr Speaker, the Hon Minister told us that he is yet to come to this House and seek approval on how to utilise the GH¢600 million. From the year 2017 to date, he cannot utilise about GH¢600 million and yet, this was duly captured in the Appropriations Act to be spent. He claims that it is due to being slow. I thought that the President said he was in a hurry and if he was in a hurry, how come we have money, yet the Hon Minister claims that because of his slow pace --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:43 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon --
Dr Appiah-Kubi 12:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:43 p.m.
Hon Member, no. I gave the opportunity to the Hon Member for Fanteakwa.
Mr Kofi Okyere-Agyekum 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you.
I would want to refer the House to page 9, paragraph 4.7 of the Report. The Hon Member said that the total funds in the Ghana Petroleum Fund is US$866 billion and the return on that amount is 4.9 per cent. Therefore, since the inception of the Fund, there has been one per cent return. That - - [Interruption] -- He said that there has been a one per cent return on the Fund annually. That is fundamentally not true.
Mr Speaker, first of all, to take the accumulated funds as at the year 2018 and use that as a denominator for the return is neither here nor there. It is misleading because over the five years, the funds have not always had US$866 billion.

So, he is totally misleading Ghanaians.

Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr Jinapor 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, for the sake of the record, the total amount standing is US$866 million. Returns on this is US$43 million. US$ 43 million divided by US$ 866 million, multiplied by 100 per cent is five per cent, which is what I said. He did not even listen to me.
I am saying that if you have US$866 million and your returns in terms of revenue -- not percentage -- if US$43 million, then when you find the percentage, it represents a return of five per cent on the US$866 million. By doing extrapolation and taking the number of years into consideration, you can do an analysis and say that, on the average, this represents about one per cent per annum. Where is the debate, and where is the disagreement?
Mr Speaker, we are talking about petroleum resources that are finite. Indeed, if you look at all our fields, very soon, we would not have these resources available. That is why we are saying we should think of the next generation. Today, we are spending all that money to pay for Free SHS. It might be good; that is not even the debate, but I am saying that when we get to a level when we no longer have these resources --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:53 p.m.
Hon Member, please hold on.
Yes, Hon Ken Agyapong, Hon Member for Assin Central?
Mr Ken O. Agyapong 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I want to throw light on what the Hon Member is saying, that it is true. I have argued on this several times on the Floor of the House that the interest on the money is nothing to write home about. But I would want to ask my good Friend, the Hon Member; when he was an Hon Deputy Minister at the Ministry, what did he do about it? [Laughter.]
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:53 p.m.
Hon Member, he is not out of order but you are out of order.
Hon Jinapor, continue and wind up.
Mr Jinapor 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I ignore it, as you said, but to state that when we adjourn Sitting, I would be seeing him because he has been running away from me for a very long time.
Mr Speaker, I am not debating whether Free SHS is good or not. That is not what I am doing. I do not want to go there. The people of Ghana would determine that.
All I am saying is that these funds are finite and as a House, all of us
should begin to think that the year when this revenue begins to dwindle, how are we going to sustain whatever we are spending it on ? I think it is a legitimate and good call.
Mr Speaker, there are other Hon Members who would contribute to the debate. With your permission, I should be winding up. I just would want to make a call that we should ensure that we utilise our resources judiciously. Indeed, we have even reduced the prices of gas yet we are unable to pay. We are building and accumulating debts.
Mr Speaker, one day, we shall come back to this House and say that there is this huge debt so let us institute a levy or tax to deal with it. From the way and manner in which these resources are being managed, I conclude by saying that the Akufo- Addo led Administration has failed woefully and the performance has been abysmal.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
Minister for Information (Mr Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah)(MP) 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this Report.
First, I commend the Ministry of Finance for fulfilling its legal obligation and the entire House for engaging in this exercise that deepens transparency of the management of our oil resources.
Mr Speaker, I would start off on this point on why about 60 per cent of the ABFA allocation has been used on Free SHS. It appears my Colleague, the Hon Member for Yapei/Kusawgu, has a problem with that. Indeed, in his words, he refers to a convention in the past where about 70 per cent of the resources allocation was used for infrastructure and makes the argument that, if I am quoting him well, “He holds the view that the resources should be used for infrastructure and not necessarily for goods and services” in this case, for the use of the Free SHS expenditure.
Mr Speaker, this debate about whether or not Free SHS can be funded is not a new debate. As far back as 2008, our colleagues on the other Side persistently doubted that it is even possible to find any revenue stream in fiscal accounts to pay for Free SHS. From 2016 till now, indeed, we have managed to prove that right here, in this country, we can find resources to pay for the Free SHS Programme.
Minister for Information (Mr Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah)(MP) 12:53 p.m.
If it is that 60 per cent of the ABFA

Mr Speaker, there is also this comment about the need to, all of a sudden, take a second look at how the Petroleum Holding Fund is being invested so that we can get more resources. As Hon Ken Agyapong mentioned, the suggestion has been made as far back as when my Hon Colleagues on the other Side were in power and superintending over that. They never listened. Today, the Ministry of Finance has already signalled that the Investment Advisory Committee is being engaged on how to change this. He stands on the Floor and makes this comment for the

record so that eventually when it is done, it would look like a brilliant idea from their Side. That would not wash. It is something that is already being engaged in by the Ministry of Finance. Eventually, when it is done, the benefit would accrue to our people.

Mr Speaker, thirdly, I would want to speak to this issue of non-payment for gas and gas royalties, et cetera.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:53 p.m.
Hon Minister, hold on.
Yes, what has he said wrong?
Mr Isaac Adongo 12:53 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague just indicated that the Ministry of Finance is engaging the Investment Advisory Committee. To the best of the knowledge of the Finance Committee, there is no such committee in place. If a committee like that is in place, he should let us know the membership of that committee.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:53 p.m.
Hon Minister, he says there is no such committee. Is there one?
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I never said there is a committee. The Hon Member on the other Side did not listen. I said the Ministry of Finance has signalled that it is engaging the Investment Advisory Committee -- [Interruption.]
Mr Speaker, may I proceed?
Mr Speaker, the Petroleum Revenue Management Act creates an Investment Advisory Committee, and I have mentioned here, you can refer to the Hansard, that the Ministry of Finance has signalled that it intends to engage that committee. I have not said that a new committee has been formed.
Dr Ass ibey-Yeboah 12:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:53 p.m.
Hon Chairman, I have not given you the Floor, please. You would have the opportunity to wind up. Be patient, take your notes and wind up.
Hon Minister, please continue.
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah 1:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it is a matter of fact that there is an Investment Advisory Committee.

My words here are that the Ministry of Finance has signalled that it is engaging the Committee to review where and how our petroleum resources are invested to get higher returns for the Republic.

Mr Speaker, I also want to speak to the issue of gas royalties not being paid and perhaps moneys being lost in that area. I would draw the attention of the House to paragraph 4.8 of the Committee's Report, and with your permission, I would read. It says:

“The Committee observed in paragraph 68 of the Report that during the period under review, there were no receipts from gas royalties in

2018”.

The officials from GNPC explained that as part of the Agreement with the Contractor for the Sankofa Fields, GNPC is to use its gas volumes to liquidate its debt. Due to this, GNPC has been assigning its volumes for the debt repayment.

The Committee recommended and GNPC agreed to furnish the Ministry of Finance details of this arrange- ment for inclusion in future reports to Parliament.

How do we come, by this impression, that some gas royalties are necessarily being lost and there is no commensurate value that comes along with it? The Report itself is quite specific on how those royalties that are not collected by the sovereign are being used to offset the debts of

GNPC.
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah 1:03 p.m.


Mr Speaker, finally, this Report is aimed at accounting to the country for the receipt and utilisation of petroleum funds. The Report is quite clear that all the proceeds that came in have been allocated to the various sectors as enshrined in the law, whether it is the ABFA or the Petroleum Holding Fund. I would commend and encourage the managers of these funds even as they seek to appropriate more value for the funds that are invested, to succeed at that exercise and to continue to utilise it in funding the priorities as an Administration like this sees fit, key among which is ensuring that our children, every Ghanaian child, benefits from a drop of our oil.

Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity.
Mr Fifi F. F. Kwetey (NDC -- Ketu South) 1:03 p.m.
Thank you Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion.
I would begin by emphasising that there is the need for consistency, and unfortunately, we are seeing too much inconsistency, especially from our Friends on the other Side of the House.
I remember very well when we were looking at starting the whole
establishment of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act when the debate was going on here. On both Sides of the House, and especially from our Hon Friends who were then in the Minority, it was very clear and emphatic that we needed to learn a lesson from the past.
The past they quoted was when as a country we had to divest Ashanti Gold Fields, and the fact that the money at the time was not kept and used for something worth the memory, and our Hon Friends kept saying what had happened to the resources when Ashanti Gold Fields was divested.
Effectively, their question was that the money had gone into Budgets, and that Budget ended up doing the normal things that Budgets are used for; goods and services, possibly payment of wages, and so on. We felt that that should not be the way forward. So upon the discovery of oil, on both Sides for the House, there was a determination that we did not need to go on that score anymore, and we all agreed. That was actually the main reason we went all the way to places such as Norway to learn exactly how we could secure this for generations to come.
I remember because I was very much into that debate, that for the first time in our history, two Hon Deputy
Ministers for Finance on two separate Sides -- I was on the Side that held the view that for the Ghana Heritage Fund, it did not make sense for us to keep investment that was yielding less than two per cent, when as a country we were borrowing commercially and paying sometimes in excess of 10 per cent a year.
It was a very hot debate, and I still hold that view today. What it means is that, as a people, we believed that we needed to think about the next generation, and when it came to the use of petroleum revenue, that should be the first priority.
Today we are talking about a country like Norway that we went all the way to learn from. They have been able to accrue a sovereign well fund in excess of US$1 trillion, and none of that is used for the current generation, because they believe that until the last drop of oil is over, that resource must be there to secure generations to come.
As leaders, our priority must always be the future of our country, but it looks like because of the desperate need for politics, at the moment, all we think about is how to survive and how to win elections.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:03 p.m.
Hon Member, you would hold on.
Mr Asafu-Adjei 1:03 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, he just said “419”. There is nothing in the English dictionary which says “419”. I would like him to explain what he meant by “419”. There is nothing like “419”.
Mr Kwetey 1:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, when you mention dry bones, old people get worried. I just mentioned that the figure stood at GH¢419 million. What else have I said? [Laughter.]
Mr Speaker, the reason I am saying that this raises issues is that it is an effort on the part of the Ministry of Finance to create the impression that the amount of money which is
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 1:03 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, he said the caption given to the amount allocated to education is ‘‘Physical Infras- tructure and Service Delivery in Education'', on page 7, Table 3.
I thought he played a major part in fashioning the law. This is not a creation of the Hon Minister for Finance. It is in the law. The Hon Minister selects four items, and these captions are already in the law. So the Hon Minister has not created the caption “Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery”. That is what the law mandates that it be called, so whatever goes into education be it infrastructure or goods and services would be captured under this caption. It is in the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815).
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:03 p.m.
So what is your complaint?
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 1:03 p.m.
He is saying that the Hon Minister is trying to hide something by naming what has gone into Free SHS as “Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Education”, and I am saying that in the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, (Act 815), there are 12 areas which the Hon Minister can choose from, and he comes to Parliament and for three years, he says that he is going to spend the oil revenue on Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Education, Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Health, Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Agriculture, Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Roads, et cetera.
These are the four areas. Until such a time that the three years elapse, he cannot come and change these, so whatever goes into education would be captured here.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:13 a.m.
Hon Member, I think the objection is because if we go to section 21(3), the areas that we can invest in are listed; physical infrastructure and service delivery in health, housing delivery, and environmental protection. They
are all there, so the Hon Minister is not misleading or hiding anything. Please, let us be guided.
Yes, Hon Member, you may continue your debate.
Mr Kwetey 1:13 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
The point I raised was simply the irony. I basically let the House appreciate the irony of what goes on here. The irony of what goes on here is that, when we read “Physical Infrastructure and Service Delivery in Education”, someway somehow, the country is made to believe that this money was actually going into physical infrastructure. The irony is that 99 per cent of this money would actually pay school fees. That was what I tried to draw our attention to.
That actually was not the intent of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA). The reason we set it into being, just as following the Norway model, was to make sure that a huge part of that resource goes into physical infrastructure because that is the only way we are able to expand the economy and bring transformation of the economy, which affects generations to come.
If we use the money today simply to pay the school fees of Hon Assibey-Yeboah's child when he could pay; Hon Oppong Nkrumah's children when he could pay; Mr Speaker's children when he could pay and every Hon Member here; every Hon Minister and all people who are well to do, then, we would deprive generations to come of that precious resource. If we use this money for physical infrastructure, even in education or in other places, we would put something that benefits generations to come.
So, I am simply letting us understand what the spirit of the law was that in setting the PRMA, the principal intent was to ensure that, like Norway, we do not think about just today; we think about tomorrow.
In fact, that is even how every business person operates. Mr Speaker, it is important to appreciate that, for example, my Hon Colleague, Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, actually claimed that from 2008, his Party had talked of Free Senior High School (Free SHS) and its funding.
Mr Speaker, you would recall that in 2008 —
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:13 a.m.
Hon Member, please hold on.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:13 a.m.
These objections to alternative
views are no more welcome. If he makes a factual mistake, I would allow you to comment, but his view is that investment in school fees is wrong. That is his view; he is entitled to it. Please, do not challenge him on that. If you said he has said anything wrong— when it comes to views, I accept every view.

Hon Member, you would please continue.
Mr Kwetey 1:13 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.
Mr Speaker, the point I was making concerned my Hon Col- league, Mr Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, who claimed that someway somehow, they had always said that they had a particular idea as to how Free SHS was to be funded. That is not true.
Back in 2008, they actually had no clue as to how they would fund it. In 2012, they had no clue how they were going to fund it. Even in 2016, when they won power, remember that at the beginning, one of the ideas that
they brought up was that they would use the Ghana Heritage Fund. The Hon Senior Minister actually said that they intended to use the Ghana Heritage fund. It tells us that they were still not clear how to fund Free
SHS.
Mr Speaker, it simply shows that they wanted to build, but they did not have an idea how to build. Yet, while in opposition, they had claimed that the money was there. At the time they spoke, they knew that all these moneys were available; but they still claimed that they had a means to unleash resources because resources were available that we could not see. They knew how to find them, but they came into Office to use money meant for generations to pay for the children of Hon Assibey-Yeboah. Why should the children of the Hon Assibey- Yeboah have the resources today, but the children that are coming tomorrow would not have access to it?
Mr Speaker, we have not said—
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:13 a.m.
Hon Member, wind up.
Mr Kwetey 1:13 a.m.
Mr Speaker, we have no problem if they want to use money to pay school fees, but it should not be the oil resource. This is because as far as the oil resource is concerned, it is for the generations to
come. They cannot use it to simply pay for today's generation.
Mr Speaker, if we decide to raise taxes; if we decide to block, maybe, leakages; if we decide to use alternative means to unleash resources; and we decide to use that for school fees, there is no problem. For the oil resource, which all of us had agreed must be used for generations to come, it is simply questionable. It is not right.
Mr Speaker, I would like to thank you for the opportunity and still call on my Hon Friends on the other Side to think through this again because they are endangering and imperilling the future generation of our country.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:13 a.m.
Yes, Hon Dr Okoe Boye?
Dr Bernard O. Boye (NPP -- Ledzokuku) 1:13 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you very much.
I would try to stay away from the very controversial issues, except that 60 per cent of the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) going into Free SHS, as explained by the Hon Chairman of the Committee, is not against the provisions of Act 815.
Mr Speaker, there is a reason for wanting to build infrastructure. Infrastructure is built so that it has an impact on productivity, and a country could develop and experience growth.
Mr Speaker, when we invest in our children as students -- human resource -- it would also definitely have an impact on productivity in the country. It is very interesting that one of those two investments experiences wear and tear with time, but the other one lives forever. So, if I am given the option of investing US$100,000.00 in either a shop, which is a physical structure or building a house for myself and family, or in my children's education, I would invest in my children.
Mr Speaker, that investment would outlast many generations to come.
So, I get surprised when people speak as if when we build a road, it lives forever. The motorway has outlived its purpose, and now we have to re-invest and build it again. It is very difficult to come across a person who is educated whose children have not been to school. It is difficult. Once somebody is educated and they become useful, they educate their children as well.
Mr Speaker, oil resources are finite; they would come to an end. The only thing that would outlast all of us
Dr Bernard O. Boye (NPP -- Ledzokuku) 1:23 a.m.
is investment in education. Mr Speaker, leadership is about choices. I am very happy that my Hon Colleague, Mr Jinapor, said that in his view, we should have built infrastructure. That is perfect; it is his view, but leadership is about choices.
There is a reason this particular leader, His Excellency the President, made the choice that he would invest in the future of this country; school children. Mr Speaker, that, in my honest opinion, is the best decision we could take as a country.
Mr Speaker, I am even more excited that we are going for this option because it affects every citizen irrespective of where they come from; which religion they belong to or where their parents come from.
Mr Speaker, we have had occasions where particular infrastructure had been built in this country which affected only a section of the citizenry. With Free SHS, all of us would benefit. It is amazing that there are many Hon MPs here who have been saved a lot of trouble because most of their constituents are educated freely at the SHS level. Yet, when they come out, they speak in ways that try to bastardise the programme. That is very unfortunate.
Mr Speaker, now, let me go to less controversial matters. When we look at page 4 of the Report, the last paragraph of the page 4 actually speaks about a Local Content Fund that has been established in line with section 64 of the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act, 2016 (Act 919). This is meant to help make indigenous companies more competitive.

Mr Speaker, the figures are very encouraging. As of the end of September 2018, 600 indigenous companies and joint venture companies had actually been registered with the Petroleum Commission. A total of US$799 million worth of contracts had been allocated to these indigenous companies. This is very impressive, considering the 44 per cent increase, compared to the preceding year.

What we have to gain as a country in the oil and gas sector is the participation we have in terms of indigenous companies. It is very refreshing that we are taking steps to increase indigenous participation. The magnitude is important because we do not want to have the same situation that we have experienced when it comes to gold and other minerals.

Mr Speaker, I also want to commend the Ministry of Energy and Ministry of Finance for putting in place strategies to ensure that we increase indigenous participation, and not only increase, but preserve and guard that participation. We can see that on page 5, where we have the number of strategies that have been put in place to make sure that the magnitude of indigenous participation is preserved.

The last strategy is of particular interest to me, and that is the application of sanctions including penalties for breaches of the provisions on regulations. As a country, we have to bite. The interests of indigenous companies cannot be inferior to that of foreign companies. We need to make sure that those who refuse to stick to the local content law are sanctioned.

We have to make sure that these are enforced. When we do this, there would be more resources to make sure that every Ghanaian, who has a brain and is prepared to study, is imbued when it comes to corporative function, so that as a country, we can have sustainable development. A country that builds roads, bridges and highways but whose citizens are not educated enough to know that they have a responsibility to protect these structures is doomed forever because

they would be built, but in no time, they would all wear and tear.

Mr Speaker, this is a policy that is laudable and commendable, and the implementer needs commendation as well. I am referring to the President of the land.

I am most grateful for the opportunity.
Mr Yussif I. Jajah (NDC -- Ayawaso South) 1:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, earlier contributions have deliberated a lot, and I would go straight to paragraph 4.1, bullet point 7. As rightly mentioned by my Hon Colleague, Dr Boye, a Local Content Fund has been established as provided for in the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act , 2016 (Act 919).
As he rightly mentioned again, this Fund is set out to help local companies to be very competitive in the oil and gas industry. Inasmuch as we commend the establishment of this Fund, its guidelines and modalities are still underway. It is on this note that I call on the Hon Minister for Energy to help the appropriate agency to see to it that the guidelines and modalities are out. This would enable us to ensure compliance at the end of the day, and encourage local companies in this industry.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:23 a.m.
We should also teach them to be honest because that is what would sustain their businesses.
Mr Jajah 1:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in paragraph 4.4, under the utilisation of the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA), as earlier mentioned by other Hon Members, it is interesting to note that out of the amount allocated to these five priority areas, education alone enjoys 90 per cent as of the end of the year.
As Hon Jinapor also mentioned, out of about GH¢419 million allocated to the Ministry of Education, GH¢404 million has been allocated to the Free Senior High School (SHS) Programme, which represents 99 per cent. Also, GH¢5 million has been allocated to capital expenditure, which represents one per cent.
My Hon Colleague, Mr Oppong- Nkrumah, mentioned that it is about choice, which is all right. Free SHS does not involve just the paying of goods and services, but also includes expanding the infrastructure of the schools. They are all part of it. So, inasmuch as we allocate 99 per cent of the amount to goods and services, we advise that some of the money should also be channelled to capital expenditure to also improve the expansion of the structures. This is because at the end of the day, students under the Free SHS Programme must get befitting structures to sit in to learn.
Mr Speaker, it would also surprise you to note that under road, rail and other critical infrastructure, in 2018, we raked in much revenue from the oil industry. However, about GH¢255 million out of about GH¢700 million from the road, rail and other critical infrastructure was used in 2018 to pay for interest on delayed payments for projects.
As mentioned, in the year 2017, we had about GH¢400 million unexpended. Why do we have to keep this money, and later come and pay interest on delayed projects? We have to look at this very critically. Interests on delayed projects alone -
- 1:23 a.m.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:23 a.m.
Do you suggest that they should give the
Mr Jajah 1:23 a.m.
Mr Speaker, my point is that if there is an unexpended GH¢400 million lying there, why do we have to delay to the extent that interest on road projects alone could accumulate up to over GH¢700 million?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:33 p.m.
I agree that you should direct him to give the money to the Hon Minister for Roads and Highways immediately.
Mr Jajah 1:33 p.m.
Mr Speaker, that is all right, but we could vire it from that Ministry to the other Ministry so that it could be used to offset that, because the interest alone is over GH¢700 million.
Mr Speaker, again, with non- disbursement of that GH¢400 million -- [Interruption] In fact, as of 2018, it was no longer GH¢400 million, but GH¢650 million. In 2017, GH¢400 million was expended, and we did not see it in the 2018 Budget Statement. Finally, as of the end of 2018, it rose to GH¢650 million and we thought that in the 2019 Budget Statement, we would find an expression of this
GH¢650 million; but it is nowhere to be found. I do not want to use the word by the Hon Ranking Member of the Committee, whether it was used for “chop, chop”.
We call on the Hon Minister for Finance to find an expression of this GH¢650 million in the mid-year budget review that he would present to the House very soon. We cannot allow that. We should, at least, be told where the GH¢650 million is.
We asked at the Committee level and we were told the money was available, so we want to see it.
Mr Oppong Nkrumah 1:33 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, I do not want to interrupt the debate, but the Hon Member has made a statement of fact that is not correct, that GH¢650 million could not be found.
Mr Speaker, the Report is clear, and with your permission, if I may quote paragraph 4.5, which says:
“A total of GH¢827,653, 566.25 was spent during the year, leaving a balance of GH¢652,292,311 at the end of the year''.
Mr Speaker, it went further to say that because it has not been appropriated, if it is added to the first
GH¢400 million, it could not be expended. It is not true that the money could not be found. This is the House of record, so it should be properly expressed so that it does not create the wrong impression.
Mr Jajah 1:33 p.m.
Mr Speaker, from what the Hon Member just said, it means the money is available but it has not been appropriated. I would want to urge the Hon Minister for Finance that it should be captured in the mid-year review how this GH¢650 million would be spent. That is all we call for.
Mr Speaker, with regard to the ‘‘no receipts from Gas Royalties'' under 4.8, as has been mentioned, the gas royalties are not available. In the first place, we were told by GNPC that they had used the gas to liquidate the debt with Sankofa Gye Nyame fields; but proper accounting would indicate that, at least, having received the gas, it has to be documented and used to defray cost -- but the amount of gas they had used to liquidate their debts with Sankofa Gye Nyame fields was not written anywhere in their books or report.
Mr Speaker, in any case, it is not only the gas from Sankofa. There is gas from Jubilee and TEN, and where are the proceeds from them? We need to know because they have not
been accounted for. More so, we need to know the total debt between GNPC and Sankofa. Last year, we asked the same question and they said they used the gas to liquidate their debts, and this year, they again mentioned the same thing. We need to know the total debt so that inasmuch as we use the gas to defray the cost, at the end of the day, we would know that they have, indeed, cleared their debts, but the proper thing must be done. They must document it and indicate the amount, so that they could use it to defray their cost. Without recording anything in their books, how do they value what they have used to defray their cost?
Mr Speaker, I want to call on the Hon Minister for Energy and the Ministry of Finance to properly document or capture the amount of gas and, then onward, use it to liquidate their debts with Sankofa. Jubilee and TEN also produce gas, but where are they? There is nothing in their books to show anything.
Mr Speaker, finally, I would want to use this opportunity to urge my Hon Colleagues to adopt this Report.
Mr Daniel O. Aboagye (NPP - - Bantama) 1:33 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the Report.
Mr Daniel O. Aboagye (NPP - - Bantama) 1:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it is important that we acknowledge the fact that the GH¢400 million that our Hon Colleague on the other Side of the aisle made noise about for a long time, at least, has been disclosed. So, it is important to underscore that.
Mr Speaker, Hon Jajah said that the figure of 600 Ghanaian companies that have been given the opportunity to partake in the contracts is cumulative. That is not the problem because it was indicated in the Report that the 600 represents a 44 per cent increase for the period under review. That is a progress that should be acknowledged.
Mr Speaker, we have to set the records straight, and I am glad that you educated us about the fact that what the Ministry of Finance did was not in violation of any of the rules in the Act, but it complied, expended and accounted for the money.
People may have different opinions as to how so much would go into education. I am glad about what Hon Okoe Boye said. Our Hon Colleagues on the other side of the aisle are looking at the narrow definition of what is called investment because they think investment in Free SHS means there is no future. I do not even know why our Hon Colleagues on the other

They say, what would happen if there is no oil? Do we know what Cuba is doing? Cuba exports doctors. Do we know what the Philipinos are doing? The Philippines export nurses to the United States of America (USA). Every other nurse in the USA we see is a Philipino. So, what are they talking about? The future is now.

We are our choices; we ultimately become what we want to be. Ghanaians have chosen this Government, and it is making right decisions for the people of Ghana. We respect the fact that because they are in Opposition, they have to oppose sometimes; but please, for heaven sake, investment in educating people -- human capital for potential export, if they care to know, is possible; it is not “chop, chop” and consumption. Otherwise, some of us including them, our parents may have borrowed to educate us but the Government has made SHS education free today-.

If they want to pay for the Free SHS, they are welcome because there is a fund they could contribute to that. Free SHS is a necessity that guarantees Ghana's security for tomorrow, and I can assure that. Recently, someone who buys scraps went to a house in Kaneshie and was bitten by a dog because he could not read the inscription, “Beware of dogs”, on the gate. Just because of the investment we are doing today, in five to 10 years' time, no child would be bitten by a dog because they can read, “Beware of dogs” signs. [Laughter.] [Hear! Hear!] The argument is simple, and I believe we are doing the right thing because we are governing the country.

An Hon Member also said that we are paying debts, but who caused it? These are some of the debts that they left for us, and we are paying them. That is why our credit ratings go up. We are not doing “chop, chop” like they did, but we are governing the people. We are managing this country to the best of our ability, given the mess we inherited.

Mr Speaker, this Report speaks to what the country is doing. I would want to assure my Hon Colleagues on the other Side of the aisle that the

current Government, under the leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Hon Minister for Finance and the Finance Committee would ensure that the proper decisions are made. I believe that all of us should support this Report and begin to make the progress we need.

Mr Speaker, yes, they could continue to say all that they want, but they should please not speak against any money spent on education because we are all beneficiaries of the investments of our parents. Investment in education is not consumption; it is investment. It is not “chop, chop” but investment for the future of Ghana, and I believe that we must all support this Report.
Mr Benjamin K. Kpodo (NDC -- Ho Central) 1:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you.
For the records, I would want to quote section 21(4) of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815) as we cannot do verbal gymnastics with what we mean by “infrastructure”. It says, and I beg to quote:
“For any financial year, a minimum of seventy percent of the Annual Budget Funding
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:43 p.m.
Hon Member, can you explain further? When you say if you want to define expenditure on education as infrastructure --
Mr Kpodo 1:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I mean if expenditure on education is considered as development expen- diture, then everything that we spend on Ministry of Education should be classified as such.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:43 p.m.
Hon Member, I do not understand it. We are debating this Report. Can you relate what you are saying to this Report? Standing alone -- [Interruption.]
Mr Kpodo 1:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, yes. It is because when we take revenue from the extractive industry, we do not use a lot of it on recurrent expenditure. What we mean by investing it is that the revenue from the earth's resources are depletable, so we invest in developmental projects that can generate revenue before they are depleted.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:43 p.m.
Hon Member, let us be clear. Please, hold on. You seek to interpret the law that you read in black and white. You are entitled to your interpretation, but do not present it as what the law means.
My father was a timber contractor who built a beautiful house, but nobody lives in it. The money he spent on me is what takes care of all the others after him, and that is investment.
So, my definition of investment is that of human resource. Your definition is in structures, but do not put your definition as what it means. That is what I want to put across, and those on my right side should not force others to accept that human resource is the only investment. Your investment is how you see it. Let us move away from using the basics; use your opinions, please.
Mr Kpodo 1:43 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we have a budget, the revenue and the capital
expenditure aspects of it. So, when we make attempts to classify the capital expenditure part of it as revenue expenditure, then we confuse everybody in this country. The reason for saying this is that the allocation to education, 99 per cent, is only for recurrent expenditure and that is what my Hon Colleagues have alluded to, in the first place. So, that is why I seek to give further clarification to that issue.
Mr Speaker, the Report also clearly states that GH¢400 million was unspent even though it was appropriated in the Appropriation Act and that has increased to GH¢650 million. So, if we look at the 2019 Budget Statement, there is a trend of non-appropriation of the amount allocated. What are we keeping the money for, if we are even thinking of doing something with it in future?
We are now moving from non- spending to even non-appropriation because in the 2019 Budget Statement, an amount of GH¢282 million has not even been appropriated. So, if we allow this trend to continue, I think that there is something fishy about the use of oil money.
Again, we need to ask why without explanation, the Hon Minister for
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Hon Member, are you an Hon member of the Committee?
Mr Kpodo 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am a member.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
So why did you not make those recommendations to the Committee House?
Mr Kpodo 1:53 p.m.
We raised these issues over there, but I am just seeing the Report today. This is the Report from the Hon Chairman. Could he say that nobody raised issues on the Investment Advisory Committee? Is he saying that nobody raised issue about the low returns? He just mentioned that the returns are low. But we should do something more positive to get the Hon Minister for Finance working. At the moment, in this Report, we are just going to approve stories.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Hon Chairman, why did you not make recommendations on returns on investment and capping.
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, firstly, the Investment Advisory Committee is in place. It was inaugurated on 16th January, 2019. You would recall that we took an earlier Public Investment and Accountability Committee (PIAC) Report when you were in the Chair. That was verified, so earlier, I wanted to draw the attention of the House that the Investment Advisory Committee is in place.
Mr Speaker, as a matter of fact, the Investment Advisory Committee is taking steps to come and amend relevant sections of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act. This morning, I engaged the Hon Ranking Member that the Investment Advisory Committee has decided to meet the two of us on the 2nd July, 2019 at 2.00 pm. I do not see how all fine details should be captured in this Report. We have said over and over that relevant sections of the law should be amended so that the qualifying instruments they could invest in would be broadened.
Mr Speaker, if he says these were not outlined in the Report, I do not know how else he wants these captured. These Reports were distributed yesterday. So for him to say that he just got his copy of the Report means that he either does not pay attention to --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Hon Chairman, it is all right. You have mentioned some recommendations you believe are necessary. It is good that you drew the attention of the House to it. The Hansard would capture that, and I would give my directions after.
Mr Haruna Iddrisu 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Chairman of the
Finance Committee knows -- On reports that are consistent with the Standing Orders, your directive has always been that the reports are for distribution. It is a matter of fact that it is only this morning that these reports were distributed while we were Sitting. Indeed, at the time, I got two and shared one with another Hon Member. So he should accept it as a factual statement. We would not, ordinarily, peddle falsehood about reports. What would we achieve by doing that?
This morning a lady walked past here and kept two copies on these tables so I shared one of my copies immediately with the Whip who sat with me.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Hon Members, I intend that we move forward.
Yes, Hon Kpodo, please continue.
Mr Kpodo 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I believe that raising this issue has to do with our oversight responsibility as a Committee and therefore, as Parliament. So if we just write stories about things not done, I do not believe it serves us well. I believe we could enrich our report by making recommendations.
Mr Speaker, finally, I would want my Colleague, Hon Okyem Aboagye,
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Hon Member, why should I, a taxpayer, not enjoy it? From what I can pay, I pay my taxes. That is the point about equity.
I used to make that argument that those who could afford should be taken out, but I was asked why those who pay their taxes frequently cannot benefit from their tax returns, and I did not have an answer.
Many of those you say cannot pay may not even be contributing to the tax kitty. So let us examine it.
We are done.
Now, we move to leadership.
Hon members, before that, having regards to the state of Business in the House, I direct that the House Sits outside the regular sitting hours.
The last contribution should be from the Majority.
Hon Chairman.
Dr Assibey-Yeboah 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, just to make the point that the apostles of social democracy; those who send their children to Ivy League schools and pay big school fees know themselves --`` [Inter- ruption.]
But I have not mentioned your name.
Mr Speaker, they send their children to Columbia, Yale, and Harvard.
Mr Speaker, before the advent of Free SHS, three regions benefited from the free secondary education in this country. Are the children of Brong Ahafo and Eastern Regions any different from those from the other three northern regions who benefited
from free secondary education? [Interruption] - There has to be some fairness.
Mr Speaker, Hon Okoe Boye has belaboured the point, that building human capital is far important than bequeathing one's children with mansions.

I am speaking the Party's position.

Mr Speaker, so I thank Hon Members.

We have another Report, but I believe we could defer that to tomorrow.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Yes, Minority Leadership?
Mr Avedzi 1:53 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we would give the slot to the Hon Ranking Member of the Finance Committee.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:53 p.m.
Yes, Hon Ato Forson?
Mr Cassiel A. B. Forson (NDC -- Ajumako/Enyan/Essiam) 2:03 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to also contribute to the Motion.
In doing so, I would also like to comment on the issues that have been articulated heavily by Hon Colleagues.
Mr Speaker, it is not for nothing that the oil revenue is heavily regulated. Apart from extraction industry that we regulate revenues and expenditures that accrue, tax revenues are often time not regulated in terms of expenditure. It is not for nothing because this kind of revenue depletes over the period of time.

So it is important for us to regulate it, and that is why all over the world, countries are moving towards regulating the use of oil revenue and even other mineral revenues.

Mr Speaker, clearly, we are seeing a system where we are using our oil revenue for consumption, and we have often said that there is the need for us to revert to the status quo. The status quo has always been that we use a chunk of this oil revenue for the purposes of investment that can pay for itself, but unfortunately, where we are going, we are using it for consumption.
Mr Matthew Nyindam (NPP --Kpandai) 2:03 p.m.
Mr Speaker, before I proceed, I would urge Hon Members that we have a Joint Caucus meeting just after adjournment, and Hon Members must try to come for us to take important decisions.
Mr Speaker, thank you once again for the opportunity to add my voice to the debate that is ongoing.
I agree with Hon Colleagues when they call for judicious application of our oil resources, and it is very important that, as a nation, we all call for accountability and prudent usage.
Mr Speaker, just as you said, what is a priority of the Government? I heard my Hon Colleague on the other Side trying to paint the picture as if what we are doing today is wrong in terms of priority. The Hon Member for Yapei/Kusawgu said we do not apply these resources judiciously because about 60 per cent of our oil fund went into education.
I just heard Hon Forson, who was then the Deputy Minister for Finance, talk about infrastructure, but under his watch, he paid GH¢3.6 million just to put the former President John
Mr Abdul A. Muniru 2:03 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, the Hon Member says three northern regions. There are no three regions in the north, so I would like him to withdraw that and correct himself.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Hon Member, at the time free education was instituted, there were three northern regions.
Yes, please, continue.
Mr Nyindam 2:13 p.m.
Mr Speaker, just as you said, the mother of all resources is the human resource. If we invest in the human resource, all other resources would flow if properly managed. And for that matter, I am calling on my good friends to even let us increase the percentage that we put on education because education is the light of the day.
Mr Speaker, people talk about the future and I am surprised my good Friend, Kpodo, decided to talk about future again because at the Committee level when we had a meeting in Koforidua on this particular oil management —
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Please, your good Friend, Hon Kpodo.
Mr Nyindam 2:13 p.m.
My good Friend Kpodo said that the future is today
—
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Hon Leader, refer to your good friend as the Hon Member for Ho Central.
Mr Nyindam 2:13 p.m.
My good Friend, the Hon Member for Ho Central, said the future is now and whatever resources, concerning the Heritage Fund that we want to invest, we should invest in the children now because the future is now. Today he talks about the future in a different manner. How could he do that?
Mr Speaker, I am happy because when it comes to the issue about the Free SHS Programme, our Hon Colleagues from the other Side say they started it —
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on. Yes, Hon Member for Ho Central?
Mr Kpodo 2:13 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Deputy Majority Whip, Hon Nyindam, my former student -- [Laughter] --would have to meet me so that I would explain to him and teach him what I meant by the future is now. He is giving a different meaning to what I have conceived.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Hon Member, you would continue.
Mr Nyindam 2:13 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you very much; I am happy he has not disputed the fact that he said the future is now.
But if we look at the Report once again, I am happy about the local content aspect that we are all calling for, which means that it is so important that we develop the locals. The Report clearly says that about 600 indigenous companies have registered, which is so refreshing.
Out of that, Mr Speaker, if we look at the amount of money that they have been able to award to the local companies, it is good enough because the total value of contracts awarded to the indigenous Ghanaian companies and the JVC amounted to US$799 million.
Mr Speaker, this is what we should be talking about because we are talking about indigenous companies. It means that the dream of making sure
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Hon Member for— no, not Ajumako. I thought a stranger had entered the House, so I actually called the Clerk to Parliament to find out who that person was, only to be informed that it was Hon Nii Afotey Agbo. I could not make him out with his white beard --[Laughter].
Yes, Hon Leader, what next? It is a quarter past two o'clock.
Mr Nyindam 2:13 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it is past two o'clock and we are in your hands. Just as I said, we would like
to have a Joint Caucus meeting. Hon Members must please try to let us have this meeting today.
Thank you.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Yes, Hon Minority Leader?
Mr Iddrisu 2:13 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I have heard people define future now; future tomorrow and future today. With the Joint Caucus Meeting and Committee of the Whole, there are many issues that Hon Members are not happy with and there are many issues that we ourselves must take charge as responsible adults. Therefore, if you could adjourn the House, then we could just transit into a Joint Caucus meeting, after which we would have a Committee of the Whole.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:13 p.m.
Very well.
ADJOURNMENT 2:13 p.m.
  • The House was adjourned at 2.19 p.m. till Thursday, 27th June, 2019, at 10.00 a.m.