Missing GH¢52.5 Billion: Chartered Accountant Petitions Parliament Over Unexplained Withdrawal In 2020

Missing GH¢52.5 Billion: Chartered Accountant Petitions Parliament Over Unexplained Withdrawal In 2020

  • A Ghanaian citizen has petitioned Parliament's Public Accounts Committee over the mysterious transfer of a huge amount of money from the government's account in 2020
  • Mike Kofi Afflu said in the petition that GH¢52.5 billion was transferred from the government's GCB account into an unknown account
  • According to him, the Audit Service started tracing the strange transaction but suddenly stopped midway without an explanation

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A private citizen Mike Kofi Afflu has petitioned Parliament to trace the whereabouts of some GH¢52.5 billion that in 2020 was transferred from a government account into an unknown account.

The petition explained that the Auditor-General found that the money had been transferred from a GCB account to the unknown account and had been demanding answers from the bank.

Afflu, a former president of the Chartered Institute of Taxation and a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accounts Ghana, wants the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament to get to the bottom of the matter.

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Chartered Accountant Mike Kofi Afflu wants Parliament to chase GH¢52.5 billion transferred from a government account into an unknown account.
Mike Kofi Afflu (L) and a stock photo of wads of dollars in different denominations. Source: Getty Images, Facebook/@mike.afflu
Source: UGC
"The USD GHS average rate for October 2020 was 5.77522. The amount of GH¢52.5 [billion] was, therefore, equivalent to $9.1 billion.

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"Mr. Chairman, if this GH¢52.5 billion (from GRA Account) had been transferred to the Bank of Ghana as mandated by Law, Ghana would not have gone to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the bailout of $3 billion," Afflu said in his petition.

Who authorised the transfer?

The letter addressed to the Chairman of PAC explained that in a letter dated October 5, 2020, from the Audit Service to the Managing Director of GCB Bank Plc, the Auditor-General asked the bank to explain why the huge funds were transferred from the bank into an unknown account.

The respected chartered accountant recounts that since that letter, the Auditor-General has not provided any explanation to the Ghanaian Taxpayer.

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He, therefore, asked PAC to get the following answers from the GCB Bank:

  • Where the money was transferred to.
  • Who authorised that amount to be transferred by the bank?
  • Into what account was the money transferred.
  • Details of the recipient account and any related issues.

He also wants PAC to summon the Auditor-General for a thorough explanation of the matter.

“We want to know who withdrew that amount of money from the GCB Bank Plc and for what,” stressed.
Chartered accountant petitions Parliament over unexplained withdrawal of 52.5 billion cedis from government's GCB account.
The full petition by Mike Kofi Afflu to the Chairman of PAC. Source: UGC.
Source: UGC

Okudzeto Ablakwa questions why BoG headquarters project cost jumped from $81m to $250m

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh has reported in a separate story that MP for North Tongu Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has published documents he says he intercepted, which show that the ongoing construction of the BoG headquarters lacks transparency.

According to him, although the BoG quoted $81 million as the initial cost, the project cost has shot up to over $250 million within a short space of time.

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The BoG has said its new head office is crucial because the current one suffers structural defects and could collapse in the event of an earthquake.

Mahama laments story about UK company that left Ghana over bribes

In other news, former president John Mahama has reacted with sadness to the story of a UK company's subsidiary that was compelled to fold up over bribery.

The company that offers services in the health sector reportedly refused to pay bribes to government officials, it has been explained.

Mahama said if he was the president of Ghana, he would have met with the affected investors to understand their situation.

Kennedy Agyapong says he doesn't need gov't contracts

Also, Kennedy Agypong has said it is not true that he makes his wealth through contracts awarded to him by the NPP government alone.

According to him, he has many streams of income, boasting that his income from rent alone is about $800,000 a month after tax.

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Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
George Nyavor avatar

George Nyavor (Head of Politics and Current Affairs Desk) George Nyavor writes for YEN.com.gh. He has been Head of the Politics and Current Affairs Desk since 2022. George has over 9 years of experience in managing media and communications (Myjoyonline and GhanaWeb). George is a member of the Catholic Association of Media Practitioners Ghana (CAMP-G). He obtained a BA in Communications Studies from the Ghana Institute of Journalism in 2010. Reach out to him via george.nyavor@yen.com.gh.