President Cannot Act On SFO Report

The Reports of the Serious Fraud Office cannot be the basis on which the President or Minister may act on any allegations investigated by it to dispose of such allegations.

The proof of that fraud and the punishment thereof must come from a court after criminal charges preferred by Prosecutors have been upheld as proved.

The Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs said this in its Report on the 2002 Annual Report of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) presented to Parliament on Friday after the Chairman, Mr Kwame Osei-Prempeh moved for the Motion for its adoption.

The Report said Act 446 indicated clearly that the mandate of the SFO to investigate any suspected fraud was vested in the SFO and could be invoked by the Executive Director without reference to any authority or agency of state.

Section 21 (1) also requires SFO to submit an annual report of its operations to Parliament and the President through the Attorney General and the Minister of Justice within a specified period after the end of the preceding year.

The SFO investigated 44 cases ranging from embezzlement, over payments, fraudulent appropriation, financial loss from investments, misapplication of loans, malfeasance in acquisitions, improper award of contracts and unlawful disposal of state assets.

The rest were ghosts names on pay rolls, conflict of interest; non-governmental organisations (NGOs) misappropriating funds, illegal foreign exchange operations and manipulation of cost sheets by state institutions, NGOs and private institutions.

Mr Osei-Prempeh said the Committee noted that the types of cases investigated did not differ radically in character from those of the previous years but what was new was the size of the sums of money involved. Out of the 44 cases, 13 have been completed while the remaining 31 were still under investigations with some of the cases completed awaiting the advice of the Attorney General.
The Committee noted with concern the use of state institutions in the execution of fraudulent deals in the country.
The Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC) and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) have contributed immensely towards the unlawful acquisition and disposal of State Enterprises, the Committee observed.
In all the cases investigated, the persons to whom State Enterprises were divested went to SSNIT for funds to pay for the Asset and SSNIT either provided direct funding or guaranteed repayment of loans contracted from a bank for the purchase of the divested state enterprise.
The Report said it endorsed SFO's recommendations to Government to address the institutional structural defects in the operations of not only SSNIT and DIC but also all state institutions that facilitated such patterns of fraud so as to protect the interest of the State and Ghanaians.
The Committee also noted that there had been an increase in the number of NGOs operating in the country but this had not been matched by Government's regulatory policy.
SFO's investigations had revealed that some of these NGOs did not only enrich their own pockets to the detriment of the needy in society but also denied the State revenues needed for development through their fraudulent activities.
Others take advantage of the tax waivers given them to assist or conduct commercial business at the expense of the public purse.
The Committee noted with concern the emergence of new waves of crime hitherto not prevalent in Ghana, one of such crime was the advanced fee fraud also known as the "419" scam.
Fraudsters were using imitated or genuine Government seals, stamps and letterheads as well as forged signatures to perpetrate fraud. The Committee advised the general public to assist the security agencies with information to the arrest such bad nuts and that prospective investors should deal with only recognised institutions in the country.
It also noted that, notwithstanding, the Integrated Personnel Payroll Database adopted by various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), unscrupulous officers in state institutions had developed a new method of outwitting the system to milk the nation of scarce resources by the use of ghost names.
The Committee noted that since 2000 the SFO had been without a substantive Executive Director and said this undermined the effective execution of the mandate of the Office.
Considering the importance of the SFO in the exposure of modern white-collar crimes, the Committee recommended the review of Act 466 to ensure that the appointment of the Executive Director was done by the President with the approval of Parliament for a specified and renewable term of office.
The Committee also complained about the absence of a Board for the SFO and inadequate staffing and recommended to the Minister of Finance to assist SFO with the needed funds to recruit adequate staff to be able to execute its mission with efficiency and effectiveness.
Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, NDC-Kumbungu, said the mandate of the SFO was to build defences against fraud, especially white-collar crimes in the society, and as such the law setting it up needed to be looked at to make it more vibrant.
He expressed concern that sensitive reports were often leaked to the private press by the SFO before the authorities were made aware of such reports adding that that position was not in the interest of the country and could compromise the stance of important state institutions.
Mr Abraham Ossei Aidoo, NPP-Tema West, said he hoped the truth about the allegations of award of contractors by the Tema Municipal Assembly would be released by the SFO.
Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketia, NDC-Wenchi West, said there was the need for all measures to be taken to strengthen the SFO to play its expected role. It must be equipped and made independent. It should not make selective investigations.
Mr Charles O. Nyanor, NPP-Upper Denkyira and Chairman of the DIC said= the proper function of SFO should be spelt out.