The Key Akufo-Addo Appointees, Others Singled Out For GH¢579 Million Rot During 2023 Africa Games
- The Auditor-General cited GH¢579 million in mismanaged funds during the 2023 Africa Games financial
- Key officials, including a former Sports Minister, were implicated in widespread cost inflation and unsupported expenditures
- Recovery recommendations include over GH¢579 million and substantial foreign currencies due to irregular payments
With the release of the Auditor-General's report on the financial rot at the 13th Africa Games, some expected names have been singled out amid the outrage at the waste of public funds.
The Auditor-General noted GH¢579 million as wasted money that ought to be recovered.
Source: Facebook
Attached to this figure are three former officials at the heart of Ghana's organisation of the 13th Africa Games.
The games were marred by widespread cost inflation, irregular payments, and unsupported expenditure across contracts linked to the event.
Though the Auditor-General's office did not make any criminal findings, it indicted:
- Former Minister of Sports Mustapha Ussif
- Former Chief Director William Kartey
- Former Local Organising Committee Chairman, Dr Kwaku Ofosu-Asare
In one instance, the Director-General of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, Prof. Amin Alhassan, is also named in relation to a training contract.
Across all flagged transactions, auditors have recommended the recovery of an estimated GH¢579,114,352.24, alongside $44,354,881.77 and €629,070, citing overpricing, unjustified payments, undelivered goods, and contractual variances.
The findings cut across catering, accommodation, transport, equipment procurement, infrastructure, and administrative spending, painting a picture of systemic cost inflation during Ghana’s hosting of the continental multi-sport event.
The three officials are linked to costs like catering, logistics, accommodation, equipment procurement, vehicle hiring, branding, infrastructure works, and sponsorship management.
For example, $2.8 million in non-feeding costs was embedded in catering contracts without adequate documentation, €572,040 in overpricing of anti-doping services, and $840,000 in inflated accommodation expenses.
The full report can be viewed here.
Complaints from hoteliers
Some hoteliers contracted to provide accommodation for the 13th All-Africa Games threatened to sue the Sports Ministry and LOC over outstanding payments.
Forty hoteliers said the Sports Ministry and LOC paid only 20 per cent of the amount agreed in the contract, with a promise to pay the balance at the end of the games.
However, barely four months after the games, they claimed that the LOC and the Sports Ministry had not given them the remaining 80 per cent they were due.
The 13th African Games were hosted in Accra for three weeks from Friday, March 8, 2024.
GBC responds to reports it recieved $3m for African Games
YEN.com.gh reported that the Director General of Ghana Broadcasting Corporation in 2024, Professor Amin Alhassan, said the broadcaster's total benefit from covering the African Games was $105,000.
Alhassan said he was surprised by reports that the GBC had been paid $3 million.
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif, had said the government gave GBC $3 million to cover the 2023 African Games during an appearance before the Public Accounts Committee on August 19, 2024.
Source: YEN.com.gh
