The Bolgatanga Technical University has been directed by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament (PAC) to refund GH¢4,000 for selling a water packaging machine at a much lower price than its original cost.
The machine was initially purchased for GH¢10,000, but was later sold for GH¢6,000, causing a financial loss to the state. The PAC has ordered the university to pay the difference in cost.
The machine was acquired by the university to aid in water production, but the contractor responsible for constructing the production site failed to complete the project. As a result, the university was unable to utilize the machine effectively.
This issue was raised during a hearing in Tamale, where the committee was reviewing the Auditor General’s Report on Technical Universities, as well as Reports on the Management and Utilization of District Assemblies’ Common Fund and other Statutory Funds for the year ended December 31, 2020, in the Northern, North East, Upper East, Upper West, and the Savanna Regions.
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During the hearing, a representative from the University was asked by the committee whether they had followed the auditors’ recommendation to utilize the machine, “Subsequent audits also indicated that we either put the machine in use or we dispose of it. We were having challenges in implementing it. We needed to construct a place to house the machine where we could produce the water from”.
“We awarded the facility to a contractor alongside renovation with one of our blocks. The contractor couldn’t get his statutory payment certificate. He felt frustrated and abandoned the projects. With our limited resources, we couldn’t complete the structure, so we decided to dispose it, taking into consideration how long it has been sitting there”. He stressed.
The Committee said, “Your negligence and improper planning have caused the state GH¢4,000. I want to surcharge you with GH¢4,000. It’s supposed to be more than that but let’s maintain it”.
SOURCE: Coverghana.com.gh
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