Ranking Member of Parliament's Finance Committee and a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Isaac Adongo has raised serious concerns about the Ghana Revenue Authority's financial practices.
Speaking to the media on November 30, Adongo expressed dismay over the unauthorized borrowing of an amount of $75 million by the revenue agency, labelling it as illegal and a breach of parliamentary procedures.
According to him, the Ghana Revenue Authority, responsible for funding the government through the revenues it generates, is permitted to retain up to 3% of the collected revenue each year.
However, this retention must undergo parliamentary approval, with the figure not exceeding 3%.
The funds are typically included in what is known as "other government obligations" as part of the regular parliamentary approval process.
“So as long as Ghana Revenue Authority collects revenue, it has no business taking money from anywhere. But we noticed when the annual Public Debt Management report was reported for 2022, I noticed that Ghana Revenue Authority borrowed $75 million. That is illegal,” he said.
Adongo highlighted his concerns when the annual Public Debt Management report for 2022 revealed that the Ghana Revenue Authority had borrowed $75 million, a move he deemed illegal and outside the appropriation process.
He emphasized the seriousness of this offense, emphasizing that the funds were not presented to Parliament or the Finance Committee, a clear violation of established procedures.
"That is outside appropriation. And the fact that they held it away from Parliament and the Finance Committee is a very serious offense. And I want to serve one in that when they are coming, we don't want to ambush them,” he added.
In a stern warning to the Ghana Revenue Authority, Adongo insisted that they must be prepared to explain their actions when they appear before the Finance Committee.
The lawmaker further expressed a commitment to holding them accountable for spending the $75 million without proper authorization and threatened to take steps to deduct the amount if their explanation falls short of satisfying the committee.
“They should prepare to come and explain which Appropriations Act mandated them to spend $75 million outside of their regular allocation from the revenues that they collect, which was appropriated and passed in other government obligations. So they should get ready, because if that is not explained to the satisfaction of the committee, they should trust that we will take steps to deduct that money. We will not allow that impudence,” he stated.
Adongo raised questions about the legality of the loan, emphasizing that even if it was recorded on the balance sheet, the Public Financial Management Act requires covered entities to seek parliamentary approval for any expenditures, regardless of the source of funds.
The parliamentarian expressed concern that the borrowed funds might have been used to artificially boost revenue targets or shore up the agency's performance and demanded answers regarding who authorized the expenditures, the purpose of the borrowed funds, and where in the appropriations act these transactions were accounted for.
“But the problem is that it is a covered entity, and the Public Financial Management Act requires that covered entities, even when you are giving free money, what we call grants, if you don't appropriate it, and it is not in the Appropriations Act, you cannot spend it. So whether they borrowed it on their balance sheet or whatever sheet, who authorized those expenditures that they spend the $75 million on? This is a huge scandal waiting to happen. Or is it that they borrowed that money to pretend that they have raised money?” he questioned.
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