There was no such thing as malfeasance – Afeku clears air on Kundum Festival, AFRIMA allegations
Former Creative arts and Tourism Minister, Catherine Afeku
• The former minister has denied misappropriating funds during her tenure
Read full article• She said all monies retrieved from the Marine Drive Project to fund the festival has been refunded
• Catherine Afeku was alleged to have embezzled some funds during her tenure as Tourism and Creative Arts Minister
Former Tourism and Creative Arts Minister, Catherine Afeku has insisted that she did not misappropriate funds during her tenure as provided in the Auditor General’s report.
Earlier reports indicated that the former minister spent about GH¢387,196 on the 2018 All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), Kundum Festival, the Minister’s trip to Volta and Western regions, and other activities.
But giving a vivid account of what transpired, she said the funds for the Kundum festival at that time delayed which prompted the withdrawal of funds from the Marine Drive project to fund the festival.
Mrs. Afeku said the funds drawn from the Marin Project was later refunded; adding that there was no such thing as malfeasance as purported by the public.
“Festivals are time-bound so when it is getting closer and your approved allocation is not in, the Chief Directors have the mandate to do what they call virement, and when the approved funding comes for the specific line item, you put these things back. There is no such thing as malfeasance or misappropriation. As sector ministers, you know we are not the spending officers, we just guide policy. So I had approval from the cabinet for a certain line of expenditure,” she said in an interview with CitiNews.
Meanwhile, the Planning Committee for the annual Kundum Festival has denied receiving GH¢200,000 from the Ministry of Tourism Arts and Culture for the 2018 event.
“No funds were received from either the Ministry of Tourism or Creative Arts or Hon Catherine Afeku’s office to assist with the aftermath of any of our Kundum Festival projects, including the Theatre Project,” the team wrote in their press statement.
