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Finance Ministry fails to account for ABFA for 3rd time – PIAC
The Ministry of Finance has for the third consecutive year failed to account for unutilised Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) of oil revenues,the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has disclosed.
In its 2019 annual report on the management and use of petroleum revenues launched in Accra yesterday, the committee revealed that the amount stood at GH¢1.5 billion at the end of 2019.
The ministry was also cited for violating portions of the Petroleum Revenue Management Act (PRMA) 893 and Ghana Investment Infrastructure Fund (GIIF) Act 877.
The Chairman of the Committee, Mr Noble Wadzah has therefore urged parliament to bring its oversight mandate to bear on the ministry’s “impunity and failure for not accounting for unutilised ABFA” and other violations.
The 2019 PIAC Report covering the period January to December, encompasses issues including the management and utilisation of petroleum revenues and findings pertinent to the performance of various institutions in the sector.
It is inline of PIAC’s statutory obligation under the Petroleum Revenue Management (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 893), which enjoins PIAC to publish reports to keep the citizenry updated on petroleum revenue and solicit feedback.
Giving highlights of key findings of the report, Mr Wadzah said the total ABFA available for spending last year was GH¢2.7 billion out of which GH¢1.2billion was utilised leaving a balance of GH¢1.5 to be utilised and accounted for.
“For the third consecutive year, not only has a sizeable proportion of the ABFA not been fully utilised but it has not been accounted for, impeding PIAC’s appreciation of the full scope of accounting to the public on the utilisation of our petroleum revenues “, he said.
In the same period, he disclosed that 45.14 per cent of the actual ABFA was spent on recurrent expenditure, with 54.86 per cent on capital expenditure in violation of Section 8(4) (a) of Act 893 which required that a minimum of 70 per cent be spent on public investment expenditure.
Additionally, he said for the second consecutive year, “there was no allocation from the ABFA to the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), contrary to the provisions of the PRMA and GIIF Act 877.”
The PIAC report reiterated its call on Parliament to restrict portions of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation’s (GNPC) corporate social responsibility (CSR) and guarantees to state institutions, especially since the corporation was unable to respond to some of its cash calls.
It disclosed that the corporation provided guarantees amounting to US$645.5 million to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) last year and was almost double, compared with the previous years’ guarantees while it outweighed its total equity financing expenditure of US$164.79 million for the period.
“GNPC’s expenditure on Corporate Social Initiatives (CSI) remains high, increasing from GH¢41.49 million in 2018 to GH¢49.98 million in 2019”, the report stated.
The report also asked the government to address the indebtedness of the Ghana National Gas Corporation as it was unable to pay $334.6 million worth of raw gas received from GNPC, largely due to Volta River Authority’s debt.
The report revealed that US$925.04 million was disbursed from the Petroleum Holding Fund for the period under review, constituting a decrease of 5.33 per cent from that of 2018, and 14.41 per cent less than projected for 2019.
On production, the report said, a total of 71.4 million barrels of oil was obtained from the three production fields, exceeding 2018 production by 15 per cent while gas production shot up by 85 per cent to 169,508.61 million standard cubic feet of gas.
The President of the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) Roland Affail Monney, commended PIAC for keeping Ghanaians up to speed about the oil sector and urged it to continue living up to expectation.
Source: Ghanaian Times
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
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Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
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