More Rot At KEEA (2)…MCE Blows Gh¢41,245,170 On Waste Management, Others

Hon. Isaac K. Sam, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipal Assembly in the Central Region is gradually administering the Assembly into an abyss, as he constantly flouts laid down Financial Administration Act, leading to the Assembly loosing huge sums of money.

This paper can say that efforts are needed to investigate the serious financial misadministration of the Assembly’s funds to ensure sanity in the operations of the Assembly.

Last week, this paper published a story concerning some of the illegalities perpetrated by the MCE, Isaac Sam together with his cohorts in the Assembly and how this is affecting effective running and administration of the Assembly’s businesses.

These revelations were contained in a Final Internal Audit Report on the accounts of KEEA for fourth quarter of 2013.

Furtherance to our previous publication on the matter, there have been other serious issues that have been raised by the Auditors.

According to the report, financial records of the Assembly for this period revealed that an amount of Forty One Thousand, Two Hundred and Forty Five Ghana Cedis (GH¢41,245,170.00) which were payments for waste management, fumigation activities, training of Zonal councils and budget hearing were effected upfront from the Assembly’s Common Fund at National Investment Bank-Cape Coast Branch in December 2013.

This action, according to the report, was against Section 16 of the Financial Administration Act where payments shall be made for work done, goods supply or services rendered whether under a contract or not in connection with any part of the public service, unless in addition to any other voucher of certification that is required.

The report noted that an amount of GH¢ 10,000.00, GH¢11,750.000 and GH¢ 20,170.00 respectively were paid upfront for the above stated services.

It also indicated that most of the payments were only supported with Memos and estimates which would be requesting for the release of funds as if these projects and programmes are to be executed but after withdrawal of the cash from the NIB paid a certain portion of the amount into the IGF account at Kakum Rural Bank as revenue generation mechanism.

It was also stated that there has also been arrangement of manufacturing of signatures of non-existing staff signature to support the payment vouchers and some of the amounts were used to pay accumulated wages/salaries of municipal guards and casual workers.

Part was also used to defray the cost of purchasing rice.

According to the Auditors, there scope to determine the validity of payment of property rates, business operating permits licences, pushing and levelling resulting in revenue generation was limited due to suppression of December 2013 payment vouchers.

This activity, the auditors noted will affect the Assembly’s means of getting value for money on contract activities.

Another illegality established by the auditors has to do with the fact that GH¢3,295.90 for which a total market ticket issued to Mpoben Task Force from December 2012 to June 2013 was however not lodged to the relevant Bank Account of the Assembly.

There is evidence that Kissi Zonal Council on its own printed a number of value books in the form of GCR’s market tickets.

These were intercepted by the Hon. Warcanto Eshun, Assemblyman for Elmina Zonal Council and many others reported to the General Assembly for discussion.

These fake value books were retrieved by the Auditors and are in their possession.

The auditors recommended that the illegalities were result of the deliberate concealment of revenue by Mr. Alfred Slippi-Mensah, casual municipal General and all members of the Kissi Zonal Council, and that reports should be made to the police for necessary prosecution of the officials involved in Court.