[ 2015-06-02 ]

OccupyGhana reignites GYEEDA scandal; demands answers
Pressure group, OccupyGhana, is reigniting the
GYEEDA scandal with a tall list of demands on the
Ministry of Youth and Sports.

It says the investigative report on the scandal,
occasioned by serialized Joy News reports exposing
corruption, and plain stealing at the Agency,
requested the ministry to take some steps.

OccupyGhana is asking the ministry to supply it
with information regarding what steps it has taken
since the release of the report in 2013.

The group wants five things: “A copy of the
report of any investigation or inquiry that your
Ministry has commissioned into these matters,
among others; Copies of all Memoranda of
Understanding or other written agreements, if any,
entered into between NYEP/GYEEDA and the entities
that are the subject matter of the specified
portion of the Report; Details (including amounts
and dates) of all public funds paid or given to
the said entities; Details of any parliamentary
approvals obtained above, specifically for the CST
funds given directly to NYEP/GYEEDA by the
Government, the budget overrun by GYEEDA, and the
“loans” to the entities listed below, and
Details (including amounts and dates) of all
payments made by the said entities to date.”

The pressure group says it is concerned by various
categories of financial impropriety identified by
the investigators who compiled the report.

Under the first category, that is, use of public
funds outside of the Consolidate Fund, OccupyGhana
said a total of GH¢136,820,153.15 was disbursed
to the Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial
Agency (GYEEDA).

This disbursement, it argues was in contravention
of the 1992 Constitution which states in part in
Article 176 that all monies collected on behalf of
the government shall be paid into a Consolidate
Fund.

In spite of this provision the money was collected
from the Communication Service Tax (CST) and paid
directly to GYEEDA or its predecessor, National
Youth Employment Programme.

OccupyGhana, which has been on the neck of a
number of state institutions for various
infractions, cited budget overruns in the
operations of GYEEDA as one of its main concerns.

It said contrary to Article 178(2) of the
constitution, GYEEDA spent extravagantly far above
its budgetary allocation for 2012.

The provision states that “No monies shall be
withdrawn from any public fund, other than the
Consolidated Fund and the Contingency Fund, unless
the issue of those monies has been authorised by
or under the authority of an Act of
Parliament.”

However, “GYEEDA was provided with public funds
in excess of its statutory budgetary provision of
GH¢20,000,000 for 2012, to the tune of a colossal
GH¢199,311,753, released through your
Ministry’s accounts,” a statement issued by
the pressure group in Accra noted.

The group raised issues with what it called,
Suspicious Business Transactions with Selected
Organisations.

It cited “Asongtaba Cottage Industries Limited,
RLG Communications Limited, Zeeera Group Company,
Craftpro Limited, New Vision Consult, Ghana Young
Artisans Movement, Jioogiwu Agriculture Training
Centre, Centre for Development Partners,
Ghallywood African Film Village, Goodwill
International Group/MDPI, and Seiwa Engineering
Works.”

The group listed staggering amounts of money which
were paid to these companies for services not
delivered at all or at best rendered partially.

Source - MyjoyOnline

... go Back