Mr Asiedu Sarpong said though the processes have not been finalised, “the President is even pronouncing judgement before the Public Accounts Committee has sat.”
“He has the right to state his innocence, granted. But when the Auditor-General has spoken. When there are processes that allow you to exonerate yourself, isn’t it prudent that you allow the processes to be exhausted as a believer in our constitutional democracy? If we all have the right to exonerate ourselves that will lead to lawlessness,” he stressed.
He continued “How can the President be clearing people even before the Public Accounts Committee when serious egregious facts are in the Auditor-General’s report that have to be perused by PAC.”
“How can the President come and tell us that by his mouth and his unilateral fiat that nothing went amiss?” he asked.
It would be recalled that the Auditor-General in January 2023 published a report on some infractions in government’s expenditure for Covid-19 from March 2020 to June 2022.
Some of the corrupt practices that were uncovered include; paying a total of US$607,419.02 out of US$4,049,460.12 for the purchase of 26 ambulances that were never delivered, paying unapproved GH₵151,500 by the Information Ministry to its own staff as Covid insurance, and paying for $80 million worth of vaccines by the government that was never delivered, amongst others.
The report also indicates that the country lost over GH₵1 billion through various irregularities including unapproved and illegal payment of allowances.
But the President in his speech outlined a number of measures implemented by his administration that justify the sums of money expended during the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the Health Committee is set to commence a public hearing on the Covid-19 expenditure by the government
