GHc68bn Audit diverts attention from critical national issues - Egyapa Mercer

Former Member of Parliament for Sekondi, Andrew Egyapa Mercer, has criticised the government’s handling of the audit into GH¢68.7 billion in outstanding claims submitted by contractors and suppliers.

Mr. Mercer’s remarks follow disclosures by the Ministry of Finance (Ghana) indicating that billions of cedis in claims were rejected after the audit uncovered widespread irregularities.

According to Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem, a total of GH¢8.1 billion worth of claims were disallowed due to issues such as unsupported documentation, duplicated submissions, inflated figures and payments claimed for work that had not been executed.

Speaking on Newsfile on Joy FM, Mr. Mercer described the government’s strong emphasis on the audit as a public relations strategy intended to divert attention from more pressing national concerns.

“This is all for PR to deflect attention from urgent matters facing the country,” he stated.

He questioned the timing of the public focus on the audit, arguing that it appeared to overshadow other critical issues affecting Ghanaians.

Mr. Mercer cited the recent reduction in cocoa prices and the controversy surrounding recruitment into the security services, where more than 500,000 applicants reportedly competed for only about 5,000 positions.

He therefore urged the government to concentrate on addressing key economic and employment challenges rather than allowing the audit exercise to dominate public discourse.