Billions Blown On Consultancy…Pratt Questions Relevance Of P.R Depts At State Agencies

Kwesi Pratt Jnr, Editor-in-Chief of the Insight newspaper, has bemoaned the level of corruption under the administration of President John Dramani Mahama. He expressed disgust over the spate of financial offers made to consultants by the government and its Ministries. Contributing to Peace FM's "Kokrokoo", Kwesi Pratt found it outrageous that large sums of money are doled out by government agencies just for consultancy purposes, in spite of the fact that each state agency has well-established Public Relations Department. Host of the programme, Kwami Sefa Kayi, recounted a breakdown of the monies spent by the various metropolitan assemblies in the country to employ the services of consultants as revealed at Monday’s sitting of the Public Accounts Committee. According to him quoting from the Daily Graphic, out of US614,000 dollars given to the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, US157,000 dollars was spent on consultancy; the Tema Metropolitan Assembly also spent US428, 000 dollars representing 8 billion cedis (in the old currency ) out of US1.9 m dollars on Consultancy Services, while the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, which received US6.4 million dollars from government, it spent over 9 billion cedis ($ 454,000) to employ consultants. The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and the Secondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly also spent over 14 billion cedis ($ 679,000) and US113,000 dollars out of $ 1.7 million and $ 8.9 million respectively. Looking at the figures outlined, Mr. Pratt said, he cannot fathom why such huge sums of monies could be paid to the consultants when the agencies and companies have got P.R departments. He therefore requested the names of the consultants, because to him, it has turned out to be avenue for misappropriating State funds. He questioned the duties of the Public Relations Officers in the public sector, asking “can’t the Ministries do project proposals? Can’t the Chief Directors make project proposals? If that’s the situation, then why do we give them bungalow, remunerate them, give them cars and excessively provide them with everything…They are troubling us.”

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana