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The Minority in Parliament is calling for the immediate resignation or dismissal of the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, accusing him of incompetence over the withdrawal of GH¢350 million from the Contingency Fund to support victims of the recent floods.
The caucus claims the Attorney-General failed to follow due legal processes, arguing that with ongoing garnishee proceedings involving the Contingency Fund, he should have taken steps to set aside the order before approving the release of the funds.
Addressing the media, Deputy Minority Leader Patricia Appiagyei accused the Attorney-General of breaching legal procedures and called on President John Dramani Mahama to remove him from office if he refuses to resign.
The Minority is also demanding that the Attorney-General and the Finance Minister appear before Parliament to provide documents relating to the garnishee order, the court case that led to the judgment, and all correspondence surrounding the release of the funds.
The caucus further wants the Bank of Ghana Governor to clarify whether the bank rejected any directive from the Attorney-General, the account from which the GH¢350 million was released, and who authorised the transfer.
It has also called on the Auditor-General to conduct a special audit into the flood response funds from the source to the final beneficiaries.
The Minority says it will pursue parliamentary and legal action, including a possible inquiry and a Supreme Court application, if satisfactory answers are not provided.
Meanwhile, the government has explained that the GH¢350 million was released from the Contingency Fund following approval by Parliament’s Finance Committee, in accordance with Article 177 of the 1992 Constitution.
The funds were transferred to a dedicated National Disaster Management Committee account at the Bank of Ghana to support emergency flood response and mitigation efforts.
Out of the amount, GH¢200 million is expected to support immediate relief for flood victims, while GH¢150 million will go into flood prevention and mitigation measures.
Story by Efua Nessa