Former Auditor-General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo, has backed the Office of the Special Prosecutor’s decision to investigate the alleged GH¢70,000 payment reportedly offered to Deputy Minority Leader and Asokwa MP, Patricia Appiagyei, in connection with the vetting of ministerial and Supreme Court nominees.
According to him, the allegations, which have resurfaced several times, require an independent investigation to establish whether the purported document and claims surrounding the payment are genuine.
Speaking on the Big Issue on Saturday, September 5, Domelevo said Mrs Appiagyei’s denial should not end the matter, particularly because similar allegations involving payments to Members of Parliament have been raised in the past.
He noted that previous discussions and investigations into alleged payments to MPs had failed to completely resolve the issue, making it necessary for the OSP to establish the facts.
Domelevo urged the OSP to examine the document at the centre of the controversy and determine whether the signature attributed to the MP is authentic.
“…But it needs to be investigated, and we’ll be sure that somebody is just being mischievous or it actually happened.”
He also questioned the appropriateness of the Presidency providing payments to MPs after they had participated in vetting exercises, arguing that such payments could raise public financial management concerns if they were not properly provided for in the relevant budget.
According to him, Parliament should bear any sitting allowances for its members through its own budget rather than having such payments come from another budget entity.
Domelevo said a forensic examination of the document would help determine whether Mrs Appiagyei authored it or whether her signature was forged, and urged the OSP to complete its work to bring clarity to the controversy.
Meanwhile, Patricia Appiagyei, has denied receiving or discussing any money in connection with the ministerial vetting process, describing a memo alleging a GH¢70,000 payment to her as fake news.News explainers
