The Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Hon. Abena Osei Asare, has cautioned Municipal and District Assemblies across the country against overspending allocations from the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF).
She issued the warning during the Committee’s third Zonal Public Hearing in Takoradi, Western Region, convened to review the 2024 Auditor-General’s report on public schools and District Assemblies.
The PAC observed that a majority of Assemblies had committed recurring infractions, including overspending DACF allocations, unauthorized borrowing from the People With Disabilities (PWD) Fund and Members of Parliament (MP) Common Fund, as well as making payments without VAT invoices. The Committee also noted delayed staff payments and a growing number of stalled projects.
As a corrective measure, the Ranking Member of the Committee, Hon. Samuel Atta Mills, directed all affected Assemblies to refund excess and unauthorized expenditures using their Internally Generated Funds (IGF). He emphasized that this directive takes immediate effect and must continue in subsequent years.
The Committee underscored the importance of fiscal discipline at the local government level, stressing that prudent management of the DACF is critical to ensuring sustainable development and accountability in the districts.
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