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Senior Minister, Hon Yaw Osafo-Maafo has strongly asserted that the erstwhile John Dramani Mahama-led government was not truthful in its dealings with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by "misreporting" a Ghc 7billion arrears; thus backing claims by the Vice-President, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia that the NDC hid vital figures from the international financial institution.
According to him, the previous administration engaged in what is termed as "a dignified way of telling lies" to the World Bank and IMF, which could come with punitive measures, just as it was done to the Rawlings led administration.
“If the right information isn’t sent to IMF it is called misreporting not under reporting. It is a dignified way to tell the world that you have told a lie to the World Bank and IMF and it comes with a fine. Ghana has been fined 39.5 million”, he told Kwami Sefa Kayi; alluding to events in 2001 where the IMF slapped a $39million fine on Ghana for misrepresenting the state of the economy.
That particular penalty was over misinformation made by the previous government of Jerry John Rawlings for the period August 21 to December 31, 2000.
The Senior Minister was however emphatic that the revelations surrounding the money drawn from state coffers, is not to undermine the past goverment by claiming they have stolen state money.
“No one has stolen money from the state but the GHC7 billion expenditure drawn from state coffers is money that we (Ghana) have incurred and it is going to affect our deficit. Every unpaid debt remains a debt and we must make allowance for the payment of it,” he pointed out.
The Minority Caucus in Parliament, on Wednesday challenged Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia’s claim that the previous National Democratic Congress (NDC) government did not account for a GHC7 billion expenditure drawn from state coffers between 2014 and 2016.
They believed the Second Gentleman of the land was still in a campaign mood and had not yet come to the realization that his party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) is now in power.
Addressing a gathering at the Launch of the "Good Corporate Governance Initiative" at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra earlier in the week, Dr Bawumia noted that Ghana's economy could not thrive well without a proper economic data on the country's revenues and expenditure.
According to him, as the new government makes preparation of the budget for the 2017 fiscal year vis-a-vis the interrogation of data on the previous government’s expenditure, they discovered an unaccounted Ghc7 billion.
Dr. Bawumia shockingly disclosed that as the government "interrogated the data to see exactly why our public finances are in the state they are, we found out that there is GHC 7 billion of expenditures that have not been disclosed. And I'm talking 7 billion [so] in the year 2016 and these come from 2014, 2015, 2016."
"So, where have they been hiding all these years and how are you supposed to manage an economy with faulty data?" he rhetorically asked.
Rebutting the Vice-President's assertions, the Minority claimed the GHC7 billion was used for "part of the contract database and outstanding commitment, and did not constitute the conventional definition of arrears.
The government is obliged to incorporate the commitments, as a first charge on the Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDA’s) budget 2017. The framework is also covered in the new Public Financial Management (PFM) Act, under the Budget Responsibility provisions.”
According to them, the GHC 7 billion expenditure was occasioned by a major initiative or reform on government contracts and expenditure, which is part of the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System project that the new administration is expected to continue implementing.
They therefore accused Dr Bawumia of lying and cautioned him against "rushing with information to the public" instead "taking time to understand" reforms and initiatives.
“....stop the lies and get back to work in order to redeem the mountain of promises made to Ghanaians during the 2016 electioneering campaign....We are displeased by the tendency of the Vice President to rush with information to the public and the media particularly the structural measures and reforms without taking time to understand the rational for the reforms and initiatives,” former Deputy Finance Minister and a Member of Parliament (MP) for Ajumako Enyan Essiam Consistency in the Central Region, Hon. Cassiel Ato Baah Forson who addressed the press said.
Barely 24hours after the Minority's press conference, the Majority countered and wholly backed Dr Bawumia's claims and warned that the failure of the previous Mahama-led government to account for GH7 billion expenditure could result in punitive action against the country by the International Monetary Fund.
Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Marfo, then wades in the fray insisting that the previous administration ‘lied’ to the IMF about Ghana’s economy.
Hon. Maafo, who was the co-chair of the Transition Team, in an interview on Peacefm’s Kokrooko Show revealed that the new NPP administration were able to trace that GHC7 billion has drawn from state coffers by going through the books of the Ministry of Finance and Controller and Accountant General.
As co-chair of the team that supervised the seamless transition of power from the NDC to NPP, Hon. Osafo Marfo makes it clears that he was privy to firsthand documents that backed claims by Vice President Dr. Bawumia that the NDC left a hefty hole in government account.
“We have seen figures that differ from what they gave to the transition team. It is not true they gave the figures to the transition team…I am the co-chair. These figures we are bringing out were not given to us by our counterparts during the transition.”
He further said “the GHC7 billion (representing arrears and commitments) we are seeing now is misreporting. It was exposed when we went through the figures one by one during the detail analysis”.
Source: Chris Joe Quaicoe/ email: [email protected]
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Mahama is a ***barred word*** and a block headed idi*t makamaka. Ndc are ***barred word*** who have no shame after this massive rejection of the ndc by the Ghanaian people they have no shame to come here to spew their stup*dity and naivety. It's kinda crazy they are out of their unprecedented humiliated defeat. If I were an ndc member I would never appear here to disgrace myself and party. Ndc is irrelevant in Ghana so they can talk and talk and nothing good will come out the only thing Ghanaians know about the ndc are that they are incompetent,thi*ves,arrogant,disrespectful,rude,hateful,envi*us,jealous,bully and intimidating and who in his or her right sense will vote for such id*ots to rule them. Aponkye is a goat can m33333 on this website who cares? All we care is never should ndc come back to power,I've forgotten they don't even have a leader how much more a Flagbearer. A disorganized and confused party,The Lord has delivered you into the hands of Ghanaians and it will be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than the ndc winning an election.
The simple solution to this fraud perpetuated by the NDC economic team led by Seth Tekpeh and ably supported by then vice president Paa Kwesi Amissah Arthur is for the NPP government to pay whatever penalty that will be imposed by the IMF and then charge Seth Tekpeh and Paa Kwesi Amissah Arthur for causing financial loss to the state...period
you are wrong, all companies prepare financial statement in ghana according to IFRS, Governmental accounting is different from you typical IFRS statements. You dont get to choose to prepare your books anyhow.....there are rules and regulations guiding the proper preparations of financial statement in both private and governmental sector
Don't be surprised if it was the IMF who disclosed these figures to the finance team of Ghana. NDC must be careful about playing politics with everything. I am sure Ghanaians have realized the caliber of people who were ruling us.
Should I expect Prof. Osafo Marfo to say Prof. Bawumia was wrong? Even the wrong statement purported to be made by Prof. Osafo Marfo is hanging. He has not been bold enough to accept and apologize or accept and justify. How can he be bold enough to say Prof. Bawumia was wrong. Hmmm these professors de confuse us ohhh.
@@Segbefia - Who told you it will never balance? Balancing of account doesn't make it correct. It's possible to not disclose certain items yet your account will balance. That is why some Ghanaian companies prepare different annual report for different purposes and they all balance. I've seen a company that prepared different accounts to the bank, another to prospective investors and another to the tax authorities all because of disclosure issues. Depending on what you want to use your account for, you decide on what to disclose and what not to and yet your account will balance. Its simple just that it may go contrary to certain accounting standards.
I believe you have never done any accounting in your life, if you hide it, the books will never balance, it surely will show in the liabilities section. They can show an expense since the jobs hasd not been completed....stop playing politics and call it a lie...assuming someone stole 7billion....still doing vodoo economics in power
Oh you know that now, tell that to the NPP stoogies who insulted and insults Mahama left, right and center
Koliko wrote: Look at this pig mouth bbuffoon.this monkey looking osafo marfo is a confused iiidiot. Word of advice to Koliko. Respect your leaders and be courteous on the internet. It does not pay to hide behind the internet and rain insults on seniors like Osafo Marfo. May you be forgiven.
This reminds me of the period Alex Asamoah was playing for kotoko. He was caught off-side during a match and he blamed it on the shout of the spectators and the commentators. He was way off-side and he indicated that he was trying to hide from the officiating officials. Meanwhile, the lineman had seen him dadaada. It's not as if the NPP is reporting NDC to anybody. If you have done accounting and finance you would appreciate this matter more. The IMF and the World Bank would certainly know. When you hide it this year, it"ll reappear in next year and the penalty would be huge. JJ did in 2000, we were caught the next year and paid penalty. We learned not to repeat it and now here we are. Please lets stop this partisan thing and move our country forward. In any case, why do you do that? My people NDC, this is embarrassing and you make it difficult for some of us to defend you all the time.