?9.6 Billion Embezzled At DVLA

Over ?9.6 billion collected by officials of the Accra and Cape Coast branches by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) on behalf of the state cannot be accounted for. An audited account by the Audit Service indicated that the amount was lost to the state at the DVLA Headquarters.

According to the Audit Service report, the storekeeper at the DVLA Headquarters in Accra, Paul Addo Tepretu cannot account for 9,650 DVLA receipt books collected from the Controller and Accountant General’s department between May 2000 and June 2001. The average collectable amount on the 9,650 DVLA receipt books, the Audit report said was ?9.65billion.

“We recommend that the Storekeeper should be held accountable for the loss of the sum of ?9.6 billion being the average amount collectable with the receipt books”, said the Auditors adding “we also recommend that management should investigate the loss further since its enormity suggested complicity of others”.

In accordance with the Audit Service Act, the Storekeeper is to be surcharged with the ?9.6 billion.

The DVLA is the State institution authorized to levy all vehicles that ply the country’s roads. The DVLA is also empowered under the Road Traffic Regulation of 1998, to charge specific fees for every vehicle registered in Ghana.

Meanwhile a former Accounts Officer of Cape Coast Regional DVLA office, Harry Kotoi, was also found to have embezzled revenue collections amounting to over ?202 million from 1st January 2000 to 31st October 2001.

According to the Central Region Audit Service Report, Kotoi has refunded ?24 million of the ?202.3 million leaving an outstanding balance of about ?178.3 million.