PAC Questions Sports ministry over unsupported GH¢35.8m African gameson 6,000 Police officers

The Public Accounts Committee has raised significant concerns regarding a GH¢35.8 million claim submitted by the Ministry of Sports and Recreation to the Ministry of Finance for the deployment of 6,000 police officers during the 2023 African Games, citing a lack of supporting documentation.

The Committee also flagged an additional GH¢455,000 accommodation bill reportedly presented to the Sports Ministry for hostel facilities used during the Games, noting that no evidence had been provided to justify the expenditure.

During proceedings on Monday, May 18, Ranking Member of the Committee, Samuel Atta-Mills, criticized the recurring financial irregularities within the Ministry and suggested that administrative officials should be changed regularly to improve accountability. He questioned how such a substantial amount could be claimed for security operations without proper records to support the expenditure.

Mr. Atta-Mills remarked that despite frequent changes in leadership at the Sports Ministry over the years, financial management concerns continued to persist. Meanwhile, Executive Chairman of the Local Organising Committee for the 2023 African Games, Kwaku Ofosu-Asare, disclosed that the police had initially indicated they would provide documents to support the claims but failed to do so.

According to him, police officers were originally expected to support security operations during the Games and were at a point being provided meals by organisers before later withdrawing from that arrangement.

Dr. Ofosu-Asare said organisers were surprised when a large bill was subsequently presented after the event and attempts to obtain a detailed breakdown and justification for the amount proved unsuccessful.

He explained that requests made to the police for supporting details and cost explanations were not adequately addressed, contributing to the current concerns before the Committee.