Volta Regional Coordinating Council overspent on Ghana@50

Accra, Aug 5, GNA - Mr. Vincent Komla Adzato-Ntem, Volta Regional Coordinating Director, on Wednesday told the Presidential Commission probing the activities of Ghana@50 that the region spent 22,000.00 Ghana Cedis more than the 720,000.00 Ghana Cedis allocated to it by the Ghana@50 Secretariat.

He said the RCC also spent 10,000.00 Ghana Cedis for the procurement of big- size Ghana flags that were purposely designed for the Ghana @50 celebrations.

Mr. Adzato-Ntem, who was testifying to the Commission on how the Region used monies allocated to it for the celebration, explained that the extra expenditure was incurred because of the intensive renovation works at the Presidential Lodge, Conference, and Dinning Halls at the Residency.

He said the Regional Coordinating Council did not consult the Ghana @ 50 Secretariat before spending above the money allocated to it. When he was asked how the Council was going to pay for the extra cost, he replied that they would meet soon to see how they would account for it. When he was asked to account for the sale of all the Ghana @ 50 souvenirs allocated to the region, Mr. Adzato-Ntem said one particular woman by name Joyce was contracted to sell the anniversary cloth and was yet to account for the sales.

The Regional Coordinating Director said the Council was directed by the former Regional Minister, Kofi Dzamesi, to award the contract to Joyce and could not explain why that particular woman was selected for the award.

Justice Isaac Duose, Chairman of the Commission, said the Regional Coordinating Council was a body and not an individual, and wondered how a decision could have been unilaterally taken by the then Regional Minister without consulting other staff of the Council.

Mr. Duose, however, commended the Western Regional Coordinating Council for presenting a comprehensive report on all expenditures they made during the Ghana @50 celebration and jokingly recommended that Mr. David Yaro, the Regional Coordinating Director, be promoted due to the good work he had done concerning record and book keeping.

Mr. Yaro on the other hand, jokingly replied "I hope my bosses outside there are listening to the Commission".

He suggested to the Government to consider reducing the prices of the anniversary cloth to enable more people to buy, since almost all the regions were still keeping a backlog of those cloths in their stores.