'The GH¢22 million imbalance': Ablakwa gives more detail of Black Stars' AFCON budget

The Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has given more details of the supposed amounts of money the Government of Ghana expended on the nation’s senior men’s football team, the Black Stars.

The MP in a post shared on X Tuesday, January 30, 2023, indicated that there was a difference of over GH¢22 million in the budgetary allocation reportedly released by the Controller and Accountant General, Kwasi Kwaning-Bosompem and the breakdown of expenditure given to parliament by the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta.

According to him, the records show that the controller and accountant general released, US$5,071,840.36 (GH¢60,306,717.8) of the Black Stars’ US$8,506,450 budget but a breakdown of expenditure by the finance minister amounts to US$6,946,450 (GH¢82,596,763.73) which shows the amount money expended is over GH¢22 million more than the money released.

“They confirm that the Minister of Finance after receiving the January 2, 2024 request from the Ministry of Youth and Sports (as put out yesterday), promptly instructed the Controller and Accountant General to release the part payment of US$5,071,840.36 which is equivalent to the sum of GHS60,306,717.80 out of the budgeted US$8,506,450.00. This settles the debate on whether the Minister for Finance acted on the request from the Ministry of Youth and Sports;

“Strangely, when the finance minister proceeded to provide a breakdown of the US$5,071,840.36 in his 12th January, 2024 instruction to the Controller and Accountant General, it mysteriously amounted to US$6,946,450.00 equivalent to GHS82,596,763.73. That is some GHS22 million more than the instruction to release GHS60,305,717.80,” he wrote.

Ablakwa also said that the Ministry of National Security was in charge of the budget for the fans that the government-sponsored to the AFCON.

“It has also emerged that there was a separate budget for the supporters of the Black Stars sent by the State. Deep throat sources inform me that budget was managed by National Security. Nothing will stop us from demanding full accountability on this too,” he said.

The MP went ahead to call for an independent probe into the government’s expenditure for the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Read Ablakwa's full post below:

THE US$8.5MILLION BLACK STARS BUDGET— KEN OFORI-ATTA’S REVEALING BREAKDOWN WHICH DID NOT ADD UP AND THE CONTROLLER AND ACCOUNTANT GENERAL’S VERY STRANGE BANK TRANSFER ADVICE

As a sequel to yesterday’s exposé which revealed that government and the GFA had approved a mind-boggling US$8.5million as the Black Stars budget for the ongoing AFCON despite our unprecedented economic crisis; I am here to keep my promise of publishing further explosive intercepted documents on the matter.

In the supreme national interest and in the spirit of transparency and accountability, I shall today publish two additional documents: the first one is signed by Ghana’s Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, while the second document is signed by Ghana’s Controller and Accountant General, Kwasi Kwaning-Bosompem — who anecdotally is in the news following his heavy defeat in the NPP parliamentary primaries over the weekend.

These two documents are significant in many respects:

1. They confirm that the Minister of Finance after receiving the January 2, 2024 request from the Ministry of Youth and Sports (as put out yesterday), promptly instructed the Controller and Accountant General to release the part payment of US$5,071,840.36 which is equivalent to the sum of GHS60,306,717.80 out of the budgeted US$8,506,450.00. This settles the debate on whether the Minister for Finance acted on the request from the Ministry of Youth and Sports;

2. Strangely, when the Finance Minister proceeded to provide a breakdown of the US$5,071,840.36 in his 12th January, 2024 instruction to the Controller and Accountant General, it mysteriously amounted to US$6,946,450.00 equivalent to GHS82,596,763.73. That is some GHS22million more than the instruction to release GHS60,305,717.80;

3. They say the devil is in the details — Ken Ofori-Atta’s letter further reveals some really shocking breakdowns: the Black Stars preparation few days to the AFCON cost taxpayers a whopping GHS15.3million; Air transport and per diem is GHS14million; provision was made for Group stage bonuses amounting to another GHS14million;

4. Curiously, in addition to the transport and per-diem of GHS14million, there is another provision for honorarium pegged at GHS2.1million;

5. Even more bizarre, despite Ken Ofori Atta’s instruction to the Controller and Accountant General contained at paragraph 3 of his January 12, 2024 letter to transfer the GHS60.3million to the Ministry of Youth and Sports in tranches, incredibly the Controller and Accountant General transferred the full amount into the ministry’s account as confirmed by the Bank Transfer Advice from the Controller and Accountant General as attached. The Ministry of Youth and Sports must assure Ghanaians that despite the Controller’s full release, the funds are intact in their accounts;

6. The breakdown provided by the Minister of Finance offers citizens a rare insight into how much would have been spent at every stage of Black Stars' progression from GHS5 million at the 1/16 stage to GHS14 million if we got to the finals. It is nauseating that patriotism is no longer a factor in these considerations. Perhaps those who say our early calamitous exit was a blessing in disguise have found their justification;

7. It has also emerged that there was a separate budget for the supporters of the Black Stars sent by the State. Deep throat sources inform me that budget was managed by National Security. Nothing will stop us from demanding full accountability on this too.

It is clear to me that the only way out of this grand mess is to immediately curtail any further expenditure on the Black Stars including that ill-advised, rushed and misguided search for a new coach, and to urgently commission an independent forensic audit.

Parliament must also assert its constitutional oversight authority when the House resumes. These outlandish breakdowns, illegalities and insulting opacity must be probed and sanctioned — we cannot afford to let the people down.

BAI/OGB

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