Thursday, February 14, 2013

JUDGEMENT DEBT CHIEF RECEIVES PAY VOUCHERS


Sole-Commissioner Justice Yaw Apau

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com
By William Yaw Owusu
Thursday February 14, 2013.

Sole-Commissioner Justice Yaw Apau, investigating the payment of Judgement Debts has sent signal to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) that the fact-finding body would rely heavily on the ministry for its work.

He said “As for you (Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning), you are the ministry holding the country’s money basket so there will be nowhere to turn to than to come to you for you to explain issues to us,” Justice Apau who doubles as Court of Appeal judge said at the commission’s sitting at the Old Parliament House in Accra yesterday.

The ‘Commission of Enquiry into the payment of Judgement Debt and Akin’ under C.I. 79 to investigate the frivolous and dubious payments of huge monies to undeserving individuals and companies, was appointed by President John Dramani Mahama after public uproar over the payments in what has now come to be termed as Judgement Debts (JD).

Notable among them were payments made to CP (€94 million) and the never-ending case of GH¢51.2million parted to the self-styled National Democratic Candidate (NDC) financier, Alfred Agbesi Woyome, both of which many believed were dubious and frivolous.

Led in evidence by Dometi Kofi Sorkpor, a Chief Economics Officer at MoFEP Kwadwo Awua-Peasah appearing for the second time, tendered in evidence a list of pay vouchers issued from 2000 to 2012 in respect of the payments of judgement debts, settlement, compensations and arbitrations.

“We have made notes on the list to indicate which of them were not routed through the MoFEP.”

When asked by the Sole-Commissioner why the government did not have a single channel for the payments of judgement debt, settlement, compensations and arbitrations, the Chief Economics Officer replied that claims could emanate from all sectors of the economy and there different approaches to the payments.

“For those that are done through MoFEP, they are claims that sometimes the Attorney-General (AG) asks us to process payment. The other ones are compensations mostly prepared by the Lands Commission.”

He said that “the onus is always on the spending officer who is a Chief Director of any of the ministries to ensure that payments are made.”

Mr. Awua-Peasah told the commission that when the ministry issues the release letters for payments they send copies the AG but when the payments are done they do not always notify the government’s legal advisor because the process “are bound by cheques”.

He said that delay in the payments of judgement debt, settlement, compensations and arbitrations are not deliberate because “that is just at the time the liquidity comes in.”

He said that the evidence of payment requested by the commission could best be answered by the Controller and Accountant-General.

“Upon the request we realised that function can best be played by the Controller and Accountant-General so we have written to them asking them to inform the Bank of Ghana about it.”

Earlier, representative from the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department testified at the commission.

James Ntim Amponsah, a deputy Controller in charge of Treasuries, appearing for the second time, tendered in evidence a list of payment vouchers from 1999 to 2007.

He however, said they were still searching for documents covering 1993 to 1998 and asked for more time to be able to search for the documents from their department and Public Records and Archive Administration (PRAD).
The commission said it will announce its next sitting date.

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