EOCO to open fresh charges against SADA

The Executive Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), Yao Charles says his outfit is preparing to take up the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) issue of financial impropriety and probe into reports from the Auditor- General.

Mr Charles made the disclosure at the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) sitting at Parliament in Accra.

EOCO appeared before the Committee to answer queries from the Auditor-General’s report for late submission of 2010 and 2011 financial statement for audit.

The Audit report recommended that the Executive Director should instigate measures to ensure the Accountant is made more responsive to his duties by improving the accounting systems to facilitate the early submission of subsequent accounts.

According to Mr Charles, the delays were due to back logs of audit of previous years accounts.

Some of the infractions levelled against SADA in the Auditor-General report for 2013/2014 included a wasteful expenditure on trips to Turkey,which cost GH?186,372-which related to SADA and eight district assemblies that organized a sister city trip to Istanbul in 2013.

According to the Auditor’s recommendation, management should surcharge the total amount of GH?186,372 expended on the trip against the former CEO, Mr Gilbert Seidu Iddi who authorize the payments.

The other included an unapproved trip to Birmingham and Berlin, at a cost of GH?69,840-which related to a marketing trip organized by Kasmed Seed to explore opportunities for the sale of butternut squash in which three SADA staff participated.