Auditor-General queries CHRAJ over renovation of commissioner’s residence
It has been established that the Auditor-General queried the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) in 2012 for circumventing the procurement law in the award of contract for the renovation of the official residence of the Commissioner.
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The Auditor-General’s report, a copy of which the Daily Graphic has, stated that CHRAJ had breached the provisions of the Public Procurement Act (PPA), 2003 (Act 663) in the procurement of accommodation for its commissioner.
“We recommend that management should be circumspect and adhere to the dictates of the PPA in such future transactions to avoid waste and for programme objectives to be achieved.”
According to the report, CHRAJ has also failed to refund GH¢89,551.79 to government chest, which resulted from overstatement made in request for funds for the payment of emoluments and had consequently charged the management of CHRAJ, led by Ms Lauretta Lamptey, to refund the money without delay.
“We also recommend to management to ensure that henceforth, accurate data is submitted for the release of funds to prevent a recurrence, otherwise the responsible officers would be held liable for a refund of the excess funding,” the report said.
Last Tuesday, the Daily Graphic, after several weeks of investigations, uncovered trails of staggering expenditures by Ms Lamptey on her rent accommodation at the African Union Village (AU), cost of renovation of her official residence and her hotels bills at the expense of the state.
According to the report, Ms Lamptey has, since August this year, moved into a hotel after her US$5,500 monthly rent for apartment at the AU Village had expired. The daily rate for the hotel is the cedi equivalent of $456.25.
The official residence, which was occupied by former commissioner, Justice Emile Short, is currently being redesigned with several variations at her instance, all at a cost of GH¢182,000. This, according to the Auditor-General’s report, is an aberration of the country’s procurement laws.
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Though CHRAJ had constituted an Audit Report Implementation Committee (ARIC) in accordance with Section 30 of the Audit Service Act 2000 (Act 584), the committee was inactive as the Auditor-General could not obtain minutes of its meetings for review.
Other violations
The report had also established that out of the five per cent withholding tax of GH¢88,529.00 for the three-year period reviewed, management remitted only GH¢36,145 to the Domestic Tax Revenue Division (DTRD) leaving a balance of GH¢52,384.
“We urge management to pay the outstanding tax and ensure prompt and regular payments in future,” it said.
The report also established that various purchases amounting to GH¢34,994.89 were not routed through stores before use in violation of Store Regulation 0502.
“For accountability of stores, we recommend that supervision must be strengthened and the storekeeper should keep proper records on the commission’s receipts and issue of items purchased.”
Civil society reacts
Since the news broke, several civil society groups have raised serious concerns over the huge expenditure on the accommodation of the Commissioner of CHRAJ.
They have described the expenditure as constituting an injustice, wasteful and an open loot of state resources.
The four groups are IMANI Ghana, the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD), the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC) and the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII).
Writer’s email: suleiman.mustapha@graphic.com.gh