The Director-General of the Internal Audit Agency (IAA), Dr. Eric Oduro Osae, (IAA), has urged with Ghanaians to refrain from pressuring Auditor-General Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, to prosecute those named in audit reports.
According to him, there is no need for him to be levying surcharges because the financial statements of the various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) are true and fair.
“We should stop putting undue pressure on the Auditor General. We should protect the credibility and integrity of constitutional bodies and state institutions. Because the audit that is conducted to establish irregularities or to express an independent opinion on financial statements of public institutions may be different from an audit to establish disallowance and surcharge procedures.
“Even though professionally, the two could have been done when you are on the premises of the client to save the state some resources. The Auditor General has indicated in his report that he will do a further review of the infractions and those that he is able to establish higher level culpability, he will issue disallowance and surcharges,†he said.
He added that those criticizing the Auditor General are merely harming the reputation of the government agency he oversees.
Many Ghanaians, including members of the Coalition for Democratic Accountability and Inclusive Governance, have berated the Auditor General for failing to prosecute people whom his office finds to have committed infractions at the various MDAs and have called
Some notable members of the coalition, including lawyer Samson Ayenini, lawyer Martin Kpebu and lawyer Akoto Ampaw, have said that failure to prosecute such persons is a dereliction of duty and an upfront to the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.
They have, therefore, urged the Auditor General to resign for someone ready to hold corrupt officials accountable to take his position.