By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
A Chartered Procurement and Supply Professional, Mr. Anthony Abotsi-Afriyie, has urged the Auditor-General’s Department to adopt more proactive measures to prevent the recurrence of procurement and contract irregularities as seen over the years.
According to him, a painstaking study of the procurement and contract irregularities contained in the various reports released year-in-year-out from audit exercises is similar in substance and form.
“It is my humble view that, especially in respect of procurement and contract-related issues, more proactive measures can be recommended and implemented to prevent recurrence as seen over the years.” he reiterated.
Mr. Abotsi-Afriyie’s call was contained in a letter written to the Auditor-General and copied to the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament, Chairperson of Public Accounts Committee – Parliament, Ag. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Public Procurement Authority (PPA) and the Chief of Staff of the Office of the President.
The irregularities highlighted by the various audit reports referenced year-on-year comprise cash irregularities, uncollected revenue, inefficient revenue collection systems, unrecovered rent, unaccounted revenue, un-presented value books, payroll irregularities, sanitation management irregularities, tax irregularities, procurement irregularities, and contract irregularities.
Mr. Abotsi-Afriyie explained that the amalgamation of irregularities accounts for huge losses and underutilizations in public service operations, a chunk of which he said could have been prevented or mitigated with the right interventions.
“Generally, the recommendations that emanate from the Audit Reports are reactive and remedial in nature – rightly so, as they seek to correct infractions that have already occurred during the period under review.
The only exceptions are instances where the report instructs the officers of these institutions to adhere to applicable laws and regulations,” portions of the letter read.
He has thus proposed eight points to address the recurrence of procurement and contract irregularities as seen over the years.
The first five (5) of his proposal are alternative recommendations that speak to specific procurement and contract irregularities as gleaned from AG’s reports, while the last three (3) are generic in nature.
Below is the unedited copy of the letter written to the AG by Mr. Anthony Abotsi-Afriyie.
SUGGESTION OF ALTERNATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS IN RESPECT OF PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACT IRREGULARITIES FOR CONSIDERATION OF THE
AUDITOR-GENERAL
Anthony Abotsi-Afriyie, MCIPS (CS)
P. O. BOX MB OH 154
KASOA
August 13, 2025
THE AUDITOR-GENERAL
GHANA AUDIT SERVICE
P. O. BOX MB 96
ACCRA
Dear Sir,
RE: TRANSMITTAL OF AUDITOR-GENERAL’S REPORTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED
DECEMBER 31, 2024 – SUGGESTION OF ALTERNATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS IN RESPECT OF PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACT IRREGULARITIES FOR CONSIDERATION
Please permit me to commend you and your team for the good work you continue to do for our motherland in fulfilment of your constitutional mandate as enshrined in the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
The importance of your office’s role in our nation-building efforts cannot be over-emphasized, especially in our bid to achieve prudence in the administration of public resources for the general good.
Reference to the transmittal of your reports for the year ended December 31, 2024, to the Right Honourable Speaker of Parliament and the publication of the same on the Audit Service’s website. Specifically, I am referring to reports on the accounts of the under-listed as submitted in June 2025;
- District Assemblies
- District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF)
- Ministries, Departments, and Other Agencies (MDA)
- Public Boards, Corporations, and Other Statutory Institutions
- Public Universities and Colleges of Education
- Pre-University Educational Institutions
- Procurement and Maintenance of Medical Equipment in Teaching Hospitals (Performance Audit Report submitted in May 2025)
I have painstakingly studied the reports and regret to note that the observations made through the audit exercise are similar in substance and form to the same issues that are usually highlighted year on year.
The irregularities highlighted by the reports referenced above comprise cash irregularities, uncollected revenue, inefficient revenue collection systems, unrecovered rent, unaccounted revenue, un-presented value books, payroll irregularities, sanitation management irregularities, tax irregularities, procurement irregularities, and contract irregularities.
It is the amalgamation of these irregularities that accounts for the huge losses and underutilizations in our public service operations, a chunk of which could have been prevented or mitigated with the right interventions.
Generally, the recommendations that emanate from the Audit Reports are reactive and remedial in nature – rightly so, as they seek to correct infractions that have already occurred during the period under review.
The only exceptions are instances where the report instructs the officers of these institutions to adhere to applicable laws and regulations.
It is my humble view that, especially in respect of procurement and contract-related issues, more proactive measures can be recommended and implemented to prevent recurrence as seen over the years.
I am Anthony Abotsi-Afriyie, a Chartered Procurement and Supply Professional of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS). I have a Master’s Degree in Supply Chain Management from Coventry University (UK) with almost two decades in the study and practice of procurement and Supply Chain Management.
I believe that many of the irregularities in our public sector, as perennially highlighted by your reports, have some correlation with procurement and supply chain management and can be addressed conclusively with procurement and supply chain interventions.
I have therefore analyzed and categorized the procurement and contract irregularities in the reports mentioned above and wish to share some alternative recommendations for the consideration of your team going forward, as enumerated below.
They are eight (8) in number, the first five (5) are alternative recommendations that speak to specific procurement and contract irregularities as gleaned from your report, while the last three (3) are generic in nature.
1.0 Contract Management
Scope: This covers Delayed/ Abandoned Projects and Defective works
Alternative Recommendation: Comprehensive Tender Document Preparation (since the Tender Document forms the bedrock of the contract) and the inclusion of clauses on retention and Liquidated Damages to mitigate the state’s risk.
2.0 Lax Procure-to-Pay (P2P) Payment Systems
Scope: This covers payment for unexecuted works, overpayment to suppliers, and full payment for under-supplied items
Alternative Recommendation: Include and insist on matching systems in the processing of payments, thus 2-way matching (Purchase Order-Invoice), 3-way matching (Purchase Order Invoice-Goods Received Note), or 4-way matching (Purchase Order-Invoice-Goods Receipt Number-Inspection/Completion Report) as the case may be.
3.0 Poor Inventory Management
Scope: This covers non-documentation of store items. Alternative Recommendation: Usage of the full complement of Store/Warehouse documentation. These include Stores Receipt Voucher, Stores Issue Voucher, Goods Receipt Note, Goods Consignment Note, Inspection Report, etc.
4.0 Inadequate needs assessment, specifications, and procurement packaging
Scope: This covers third-party repairs of medical equipment, though in-house biomedical technicians are on post, excluding ancillary works that will make projects usable and the supply of items with wrong specifications.
Alternative Recommendation: Technical training should be part of the procurement packages for the procurement of highly specialized medical equipment. This should be added to the procurement guidelines of all teaching hospitals. Entities should develop or adopt a coding nomenclature (whether electronic/manual) to address the phenomenon of wrong specifications.
5.0 Non-Compliance
Scope: This covers award of contract to suppliers not registered with the PPA, award of contract to suppliers with invalid Tax & SSNIT clearance certificates, non-competitive procurement, single-source procurement without PPA approval, pre-financing form procurement of goods, contract variations without approval leading to increase in contract sums, Head of Entity (HOE) instead of Entity Tender Committee (ETC) approvals and no ETC approval though required.
Alternative Recommendation: Structured Hands-on Training Program for public procurement practitioners.
6.0 Procurement Planning
Insisting and ensuring that all public entities procure in accordance with their prepared, approved, and published Procurement Plans will go a long way to streamline the procurement function in our state institutions. An effective way of ensuring compliance with the Procurement
The plan is to inculcate a quarterly reporting and review mechanism into their operations. This provides both the Head of Entity (HOE) and the Entity Tender Committee (ETC) with an opportunity to identify any potential for derailed procurements and respond with corrective action as soon as practicable.
7.0 Performance Security
Performance Securities are often provided in the form of either a bank guarantee or an insurance bond. While both serve the same purpose, they differ significantly in their risk assessment and collateral requirements.
It is trite industry knowledge that performance securities issued by banks are more reassuring and offer better guarantees than those issued by insurance companies. Your team may consider recommending to state procuring entities to insist on performance securities issued in the form of bank guarantees for high-value procurements (i.e, either goods or works) to better protect the interest of the state in instances of non-performance.
8.0 Legislation on the qualification of procurement staff
With procurement evolving to become a strategic role in the administration and management of entities, it has become a useful tool for the judicious use of resources and the curbing of corrupt practices while spurring economic growth, especially in developing countries like ours.
None of these benefits can be realized, however, without the engagement of qualified personnel to discharge the roles and responsibilities that the function of procurement comes with. As evidenced by the many procurement and contract infractions that continue to cause our nation dearly, not only in terms of our meagre resources but also the reputational damage to our nation and its attendant consequences, I think your outfit should consider recommending for legislation, in consultation-with the Public Procurement Authority and other relevant stakeholders, a baseline qualification for the performance of procurement functions in our public institutions.
It is my prayer that the above suggestions would be worthy of your consideration as we collaborate to improve the efficiency of our dear nation’s public institutions. I am available for any form of clarification, assistance, or engagement that may be required by your team.
Humbly submitted, please.
Yours faithfully,
Anthony Abotsi-Afriyie, MCIPS (CS)
Awutu-Senya East Municipal Assembly
abotsiafriyie@gmail.com
CC: Rt. Hon. Speaker, Parliament of Ghana
Chairperson, Public Accounts Committee, Parliament of Chana
Ag. CEO, Public Procurement Authority (PPA)
Chief of Staff, Republic of Ghana
