Judiciary steeped in corruption - 1997 Auditor-General's Report
Parliament to discuss report on corruption in Judicial Service
Many towns to get telephone facilities- Minister
Accra (Greater Accra) 24 October 2001-The Judiciary is steeped in corruption and stinks according the 1997 Auditor-General's Report debated in Parliament on Tuesday.
The report revealed a catalogue of corruption, misapplication of funds and unnecessary interference in the day-to-day financial administration of the sector by the then Chief Justice.
Mr Alban Bagbin, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, asked the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to investigate Integrated Electrical Services Limited (IESL), which had contributed to most of the mess.
He called for the blacklisting of the company and its automatic disqualification to deal with any government agency. Presenting the committee's report, he said IESL in collaboration with certain top officials of the Judiciary managed to inflate prices and under declared tax obligations on a number of items purchased within 1996 and 1997.
He said the company had won the right to supply electric power generators and a number of computers and its accessories at inflated costs and through unexpected means.
Mr Bagbin, who is also the Minority Leader, said lack of proper development planning schemes, lack of proper co-ordination, an ineffective internal audit system enabled the disbursement of money from unapproved sources for its programmes.
He said, for instance, allowances meant for panel members of the Public Tribunals were misapplied. The Minority leader called for the establishment of a Tender Board in the Judiciary to scrutinise bids for all contracts and eliminate favouritism and financial irregularities.
Mr Steve Akorli, NDC-Ho East, said IESL supplied a computer and its accessories at 6,200 US dollars and a 130-kva generator at the cost of a 500- kva generator.
He said a committee set up under the chairman of Justice Brobbey, an Appeal Court Judge, had recommended 4,400 US dollars for the same computer and accessories but was rejected on the grounds that it was expensive.
The IESL also declared a turn over of about 86 million cedis during the period but records showed that its transactions with the Judiciary alone stood at 840 million cedis.
The members, who sucked his breath during his contribution, said the ironies were sickening and that all those involved should be made to pay.
Mr Nkrabea Effa Dartey, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, called the report:" A sad indictment on the Judiciary."
He said: "After reading the report, I was deeply disturbed. Mr Speaker, there is even no record on the company, which transacted business with the Judiciary at the Registrar-General's Department."
Mr Johnson Aseidu Nkestia, NDC-Wenchi West, chipped in: "Parliament has no tender board if you must know."
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Parliament
to discuss report on corruption in Judicial Service
Accra (Greater Accra) 24 October 2001 - Parliament will on
Wednesday, discussed the report of the Public Accounts Committee of the House,
which details various instances of corruption in the financial administration
of the Judicial Service.
The report, which was laid before parliament on Tuesday, follows
the committee’s examination of an audit into the account of the Judicial
Service.
If the
former Chief Justice I. K. Abban had been alive today, he would have had quite
a number of questions to answer over his alleged complicity in the malfeasance
within the judiciary somewhere in 1996-97.
In his
absence, senior officers of the Judicial Service will now have to provide
answers to some of the questions raised by Auditor General pertaining to
procurement practices and the award of contracts in the service. A case in
point is the fact that a supplier, Integrated Electronic Services, provided
invoices in 1997 totaling 650 million cedis, exactly the same amount as the
developmental budget for the year.
Integrated
Electronic Service (IES), which seemed to have a special relationship with the
Chief Justice Abban was supplying the Judicial Service with items ranging from
basic consumables to hardware. The Public Accounts Committee recommends an SFO
investigation into the transactions of the company between 1998 and 2000 while
the Internal Revenue Service takes immediate steps to recover all taxes the
company might have evaded.
The
committee is also recommending that the police take immediate steps to
prosecute a former financial controller of the Judicial Service, G. K Fordjuor,
who allegedly demanded and received various sums of money in bribes from
Integrated Electronic Service to enable him process their documents. On the
other hand, deputy Judicial Secretary, N.C. A. Agbevor, was exonerated of any
financial malpractice and it has been recommended that he takes up his position
once again. – Joy FM
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Accra (Greater Accra) 24 October 2001 - Felix Owusu-Adjapong, Minister of Communication and Technology on Tuesday said many townships would have telephone facilities extended to them under a programme that Ghana Telecom was putting in place.
Some of them would have it at the end of this year while others would enjoy the facilities within and after three years, Owusu-Adjapong said in Parliament while answering members’ questions but was not definite as to the dates that the facilities would be commissioned.
Dr Kwame Ampofo, NDC- South Dayi asked the minister when telecommunication services would be extended to the constituency especially Kpando district to serve other populated communities including Peki, Kpeve, Kpalime and Tongor traditional areas.
The Minister said under GT's roll out plan of 2001 - 2005, provision has been made for the development of a 1000 -line switching facility at Kpando by the end of this year.
Mr Owusu-Adjapong said at the moment, under ground cable and transmission works have been completed and the switching equipment delivered. It was expected that on the completion of the project a loop-dial and fixed wireless systems would be used to provide pay phone services as well as communication centres to Tongor, Kpalime and Kpeve townships.
He said efforts were also under way to expand switch capacities at Ho and Amedzope to enable telephone services to be extended to Peki by the radio system.
Owusu-Adjapong said GT was aware that Goaso, Mim, Kukuom and Sankore do not have telephone facilities and has consequently made provision for a 1000-line switching facility each for the towns for installation by the year 2003.
It was expected that telecommunication services would be extended from the proposed facilities to reach the surrounding communities while GT One-touch mobile service would eventually be deployed in the area.
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