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It is 'erroneous' for UTAG to assume Legon management was not engaged before final report on Gh¢59.2 million overstated payroll - Audit Service

Jemima Okang Addae May - 23 - 2025 , 17:19 2 minutes read

The Ghana Audit Service has dismissed accusations by the University of Ghana chapter of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG-UG), calling their claims about the recent audit report “inappropriate and not grounded on facts.”

UTAG-UG had earlier criticised the Auditor-General’s handling of a special audit involving the University of Ghana, alleging procedural and ethical breaches and disputing claims that the university overstated employee compensation by GH¢59.2 million between 2022 and 2024.

In a statement released following UTAG-UG’s May 20 press conference, the Audit Service clarified that the report in question — “Recoveries Made from Disallowed Expenditure in the Auditor-General’s Reports from 2020–2023 and Payroll Savings as at 31st December 2024”, was not an indictment of the university, but rather a record of recoveries and payroll savings made through routine audits.

“The public should disregard such calls by UTAG-UG,” the Service stated, stressing that the audit adhered to international standards, including the International Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAIs), the 1992 Constitution, the Public Financial Management Act (2016), and the Audit Service Act (2000).

The Service explained that its audits are corrective, not punitive, and aim to ensure compliance with financial regulations rather than to tarnish institutional reputations.

It also noted that there had been ongoing engagements with the University of Ghana’s management prior to the publication of the report, during which issues related to payroll and compensation were discussed and addressed.

“Throughout the process, the audit team engaged the entity concerned, raising any deviations with them for their response before the final certificate was signed,” the statement said, rejecting suggestions of a lack of due process.

The Audit Service further clarified that disallowed payroll amounts typically arise from lack of financial clearance or unapproved allowances, which are then recorded as savings to the state, and do not automatically imply wrongdoing on the part of the institutions involved.