By Iddi Yire
Accra, Jan 18, GNA – The Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has recovered GHS89,725.56 out a total of GHS97,182.00 being salary advances paid to staff.
Dr Opoku Ware Ampomah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Hospital, testifying before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament on Wednesday, said out of the recovered sum of GHS89,725.56, at the time of verification, the auditors had verified GHS66,221.56.
The CEO was responding to issues concerning the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital raised in the Report of the Auditor-General on Public Accounts of Ghana: Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for the Year Ended 31 December 2020.
Regulation 32 of the Public Financial Management Regulations, 2019 (L.I. 2378) states, among others, that the Principal Spending Officer of each covered entity shall take effective and appropriate steps to collect money due to the covered entity.
The auditors observed that although the Ministry granted advances to staff, it did not have a robust control mechanism for the recovery of those advances.
Their examination of the Salary Advances Ledger disclosed that salary advances granted by 15 BMCs (Budget Management Centres) of the Ministry of Health to 183 staff, totaling GH¢236,903.82, remained unrecovered as at 31 December 2020.
The auditors recommended that the Heads of the respective BMCs should recover the outstanding advances from the affected staff, failure to which the amount should be recovered from the Heads of the BMCs.
They further recommended that the Ministry of Health should desist from granting such advances.
Dr Ampomah said after the auditors’ verification of the amount recovered, the Hospital also recovered GHS23,514.00, which was yet to be verified by the auditors.
He reiterated that the outstanding balance of those salary advances was GHS7,457.00, which Management was still recovering.
Dr James Klutse Avedzi, the Chairman of PAC and National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Ketu North, questioned Dr Ampomah on the way forward.
“So, you are still recovering the balance of GHS7,457.00,” he asked.
Dr Ampomah: “Yes, Mr Chairman.”
Dr Avedzi: “Are you still granting salary advances to the staff?”
Dr Ampomah: “We’ve stopped granting.”
The Chairman urged the CEO to continue with the efforts to recover the outstanding balance and provide the auditors with the evidence of recovery.
GNA