NDC MPs want to refile the motion to investigate the expenditure of Covid-19 funds
The Minority caucus in Ghana’s legislature has planned to refile a motion to investigate the Covid-19 expenditure.
Leader of the caucus, Haruna Iddrisu, pointed out that they fill more gingered by viral audio from a regional executive of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) that suggests that the Covid funds were distributed to party functionaries.
“This is just a tip of the iceberg. We were here when our Foreign Affairs Committee reported how monies adding up to about GH¢66 million were spent on behalf of the ministry. Since when has the Ministry of Finance begun a procurement entity for the Ministry of Foreign affairs?”
“Nana Akufo-Addo is presiding over the gigantic spending and disbursement of Covid-19 expenditure. We will renew our position. We will refile the motion.”
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, had initially admitted the motion from three Members of the Minority Caucus for an inquiry into the expenditure made by the government since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
Meanwhile, the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu in February 2020 quashed the motion on the floor of Parliament with the explanation that such a bi-partisan committee is already provided for by the Constitution since the Auditor General and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) are empowered to do such work.
“All the committees of the house, including the Public Accounts Committee, are bipartisan, and the Public Accounts Committee is designed by nature to be chaired by members of the Minority. In all its form, the Public Accounts Committee, if it is minded to investigate anything related to the Covid-19 expenditure, fully sees to the authority and power to investigate that, particularly because all the accounting of it has been provided for in the budget which budget has been provided by the House and is before the committee. My view is that this motion ought not to have been admitted, and it’s improperly before the House.”
