Ghana Auditor-General: Local Govt Audit Omission in COVID-19 Funds

• Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni uncovered a significant discrepancy in Ghana's COVID-19 expenditure audit.
• The Auditor-General's report cited GH¢96.3 million for fumigation, but Awuni found the Ministry of Local Government alone spent GH¢299 million on market fumigation between April and November 2020.
• The Audit Service confirmed it had audited the ministry's spending, including fumigation, and received the ministry's expenditure figures.
• Despite this, the Audit Service explained the omission by stating that not including the figures did not mean they were not audited.
• Awuni questioned this explanation, highlighting that the audit's objective was to provide a fair representation of all COVID-19 receipts and expenditures, not solely to identify wrongdoing.

This situation raises significant questions about public finance accountability Ghana and the completeness of official audit findings, especially for large public expenditures.

Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has brought to light a significant discrepancy in Ghana's official COVID-19 expenditure audit, specifically concerning the Ministry of Local Government's spending on fumigation. Awuni's findings challenge the completeness of the Auditor-General's special report, which cited a total of GH¢96.3 million for fumigation activities. His independent investigation, however, revealed that the Ministry of Local Government alone expended a far greater sum of GH¢299 million on three distinct phases of market fumigation between April and November 2020.

This substantial difference raises critical questions about the scope and accuracy of the public accounting of pandemic-related funds. Awuni, speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on a Tuesday, detailed how his inquiry began with a direct approach to the Audit Service to ascertain whether the Ministry of Local Government's expenditures, particularly for fumigation, had been subjected to audit. The Audit Service subsequently confirmed that the ministry's spending had indeed been audited, including the specific fumigation costs.

The core of the issue lies in the stark contrast between the audited figure presented in the Auditor-General's report and the actual expenditure identified by Awuni's probe. The fact that a single ministry's documented spending on a specific activity during the pandemic period so vastly exceeded the total reported national figure for that same activity points to a potential Ghana Auditor-General local govt audit omission that could undermine public trust in official financial oversight.

Following his initial query, Manasseh Azure Awuni received an appendix from the Audit Service, which explicitly listed the ministries covered by their COVID-19 expenditure audit. This documentation, coupled with direct confirmation from the Audit Service, affirmed that the Ministry of Local Government was among those whose financial activities had been reviewed. Awuni specifically inquired about the ministry's fumigation spending, and the Audit Service reiterated that all expenditures, including fumigation, had been thoroughly audited. Furthermore, Awuni's investigation confirmed that the Ministry of Local Government had submitted its detailed fumigation expenditure figures to the Auditor-General during the audit process.

Despite these confirmations of a comprehensive audit, the Audit Service offered a perplexing explanation for the absence of the Ministry of Local Government's substantial fumigation costs from the final report. Their response to Awuni was that the omission of the expenditure did not signify that it had not been audited. This statement, however, only served to deepen Awuni's concerns, particularly given that the Auditor-General's report had provided a precise, consolidated figure for fumigation expenditure at GH¢96.3 million.

Awuni highlighted the inherent contradiction, stating, "So that is where I became curious because you have somewhere listed the cost of fumigation." He further elaborated on the inconsistency, noting, "They have the cost of the various COVID-19 expenditure, and when it came to fumigation, you said this is the cost, 96 million." This Ghana Audit Service discrepancy between the confirmed audit of the ministry's GH¢299 million spending and its complete absence from the reported national fumigation total raises serious questions about the transparency and completeness of the Ghana COVID-19 expenditure audit.

The significance of this Ghana Auditor-General local govt audit omission is further magnified when considering the stated objectives of the Audit Service itself. Awuni underscored that the audit's purpose extended beyond merely identifying wrongdoing; it aimed to provide a fair representation of COVID-19 receipts and expenditures. He quoted the audit objectives, noting, "Because when you look at the audit objectives, one of them, and they actually repeated that in my letter, was to give a fair representation of what was taken and what was spent." He added, "It wasn’t so much about only wrongdoing." This broad objective makes the exclusion of such a substantial figure from the Ministry of Local Government fumigation spending particularly problematic.

Awuni directly challenged the Audit Service's position, asking, "So if you audited this ministry, which spent 299 million Ghana cedis on fumigation, they gave you the figures, you say you audited, why didn’t you capture it?" He emphasized the national interest in understanding the full scope of pandemic spending, stating, "They also wanted, Okay, we took this much as a nation for COVID-19, and this is how much we spent." The omission of huge figures from entire ministries, despite being audited, renders the Audit Service's explanation unsatisfactory and casts a shadow over the reliability of the overall Ghana COVID-19 expenditure audit report.

This situation raises significant questions about public finance accountability Ghana and the completeness of official audit findings, especially for large public expenditures. Legal professionals and compliance officers should exercise increased diligence when advising clients based on public audit reports, as reported figures may not capture the full scope of spending or potential liabilities. The findings by Manasseh Awuni Auditor-General Ghana highlight a critical need for greater transparency and consistency in government financial reporting to ensure public confidence and robust oversight.

This report raises significant questions about the completeness and reliability of official government audit findings in Ghana, particularly for large public expenditures. Legal professionals and compliance officers should exercise increased diligence when advising clients based on public audit reports, as reported figures may not capture the full scope of spending or potential liabilities.

Source: Original reporting via Myjoyonline.com