A former Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana and the running mate of the NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has punched holes into the recently passed Public Financial Management Act (PFMA), saying it lacks relevant elements to protect the country’s fiscal regime.
According to him, the law is woefully inadequate in promoting accountability and transparency.
“Fiscal policy implementation currently lacks the absence of transparent framework or institutional arrangement for providing quality fiscal information to the public; absence of an accountability mechanism that ensures that officials are held accountable in implementing optimal fiscal policies to guarantee the stability of the system and absence of a well thought out institution to ensure the credibility of fiscal projections provided by the government,” Dr. Bawumia stated.
Parliament in August this year passed the PFMA as part of pre-conditions for the release of Ghana’s economic bailout cash from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The new law repealed Ghana’s Financial Administration Act of 2003 and its amendment and the Loans Act of 1970.
But the NPP’s running mate who made the remarks at the party’s 2016 Manifesto launch, appealed to Ghanaians to give the NPP the mandate to promote fiscal discipline.
“To address the problem of current high levels of public debts and the risks of the country entering into the HIPC levels again, the NPP government will adopt rules that anchor fiscal policy implementation,” he stated.
Meanwhile the law provides a maximum of 5-year jail sentence to public officers found guilty of misappropriating public funds.
Per the Bill, defaulting officials will be liable to a minimum of six months if found guilty under law.
According to Parliament’s Finance Committee, the Bill proposes a significant modification to the funding account structure of government by the establishment of a Treasury Single Account which is a consolidated bank account system for processing all central government receipts and payment transactions.
The treasury single account is a virtual account that gives the Controller a view of all balances held in all government accounts at any point in time.
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