PAC grills GHS over transport officer who allegedly sold seven state vehicles without approval

Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has questioned the Ghana Health Service (GHS) over the conduct of a Transport Officer at the Northern Regional Health Directorate who allegedly sold seven state-owned vehicles without authorisation.

The Auditor-General cited Timothy Banzaazi over the transactions, which involved GH¢13,803 in proceeds that were initially not accounted for.

Appearing before the PAC, Director-General of the GHS, Professor Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, said the officer disposed of the vehicles without informing the appropriate authorities.

He explained that Banzaazi had accounted for the proceeds from three of the vehicles, while four of the seven vehicles had been returned.

“Honourable Chair, the total amount is GH¢13,803. The amount that I mentioned is for three cars. Four were returned. He was able to return four of the seven cars,” he said.

Professor Kaba Akoriyea said the matter had been referred to the police as a criminal case, while the GHS also initiated its own disciplinary proceedings against the officer.

“We reported him to the police. They are handling it as a criminal case. We used our disciplinary proceedings, and he’s been suspended temporarily. And we made sure that he paid the full amount,” he added.

However, PAC Ranking Member Samuel Attah-Mills criticised the disciplinary action, arguing that a temporary suspension was inadequate given the nature of the alleged misconduct.

He questioned why the officer was not in custody after allegedly disposing of government vehicles without approval and failing to account for the proceeds.

“Director-General, I disagree with you on the form of punishment. Here is a guy. He wasn’t supposed to sell these vehicles. He sold them without disclosing to anybody, and he didn’t account for the money,” Mr Attah-Mills said.

“He sold seven of your vehicles, and he’s walking free,” he added.

Mr Attah-Mills further questioned whether the temporary suspension imposed by the GHS could be considered sufficient punishment for the alleged unauthorised disposal of seven state-owned vehicles.

The Committee is expected to consider the matter further as it examines the Auditor-General’s findings and the actions taken by the GHS.