PAC rejects inflation excuse for Peki College of Education’s growing losses

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament has taken the management of Peki College of Education to task over the institution’s deteriorating financial position, dismissing attempts to blame the country’s inflationary environment as the primary driver of its mounting losses.

The committee raised the concerns on Tuesday, May 19, during an examination of the college’s financial records and audit findings. Members noted that the institution’s losses had climbed from GH¢916,000 in 2023 to over GH¢1 million in 2024, prompting sharp questions about spending decisions and the overall quality of financial management at the college.

PAC Chairperson Abena Osei-Asare directed her criticism squarely at the college’s Director of Finance, Hornesmus Quarshie, who had sought to attribute the financial setbacks largely to inflationary pressures.

She challenged his reasoning, pointing to what she described as questionable expenditure choices that she argued were within the institution’s power to avoid.

“Your loss of GH¢1 million from GH¢916,000 is purely due to inflation? You spent over GH¢800,000 on transportation costs alone. Looking at the strength of your income, you could have postponed some of these items to avoid incurring the losses,” she stated.

The PAC Chair was equally pointed in her assessment of the finance officer’s presentation before the committee, making clear that the explanations offered fell well short of what was expected.

“You make a loss of GH¢916,000, and you come here and you think you can come and sit here and explain it away? You are not doing your school any good thing,” she added.

The committee’s intervention signals growing parliamentary concern over financial discipline within public educational institutions.