By Godwill Arthur-Mensah
Accra, March 20, GNA -The Administrator-designate for the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), has given the assurance that he will support auditing of the funds sourced from the DACF for the acquisition of equipment under the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) last year.
The DRIP equipment refers to heavy machinery and tools used for road construction and maintenance works including water tankers, backholes, motor graders, rollers and tipper trucks.
Mr Michael Harry Yamson gave the assurance when he appeared before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Thursday for vetting.
He explained that although the DACF budget disbursements for the year 2024 would be audited as the law required, he would also support auditing of the monies taken from the Fund to purchase the equipment when the need arose.
His response emanated from a question posed by Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, the Member of Parliament for South Dayi and Majority Chief Whip, who inquired whether the nominee upon his approval, would audit funds taken from the DACF for acquisition of the DRIP equipment by the previous New Patriotic Party government in 2024.
This was because of the failure of the previous government to set up Management Committees in some districts to manage the equipment.
The nominee said he would design a formula in consultation with the ministers of Finance and Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs to ensure 80 per cent of the DACF funds were disbursed to the various metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) for development purposes.
The move was in response to President Mahama government’s policy to ensure that 80 per cent of the DACF funds were released to the Assemblies.
“My duty is to be non-partisan and respond to the inequities in development across the country,” Mr Yamson assured.
He also emphasised the need for the various Assemblies to tap into the e-commerce platforms to enhance their internally generated funds (IGFs) to minimise the reliance on the central government’s support.
The nominee expressed his commitment to ensuring timeous disbursements of the funds to the Assemblies and collaborate with the Regional Coordinating Councils and other sector ministries to ensure accountability and transparency in the utilisation of the funds.
GNA
CAA