The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has ordered the Sunyani West Municipal Assembly to refund GH¢116,000 within 30 days following the unlawful payment of end-of-service benefits to some staff members.
The directive was issued on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, during the committee’s sitting where it examined the Auditor-General’s Report on the assembly’s accounts.
Committee members discovered that the assembly had disbursed a total of GH¢135,000 as end-of-service benefits without any legal or statutory backing, in clear violation of the Public Financial Management Act.
Representatives of the Sunyani West Municipal Assembly, who appeared before the PAC, admitted the irregularity but informed the committee that recovery efforts were underway. So far, only GH¢19,000 has been retrieved, leaving an outstanding amount of GH¢116,000.
The Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee, Abena Osei Asare, expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of recovery and issued a firm ultimatum.
“Respectfully, within 30 days we want the monies paid and the receipt given to the regional representative of the Audit Service, with a copy sent to the Public Accounts Committee,” Ms Osei Asare directed.
She warned that the 30-day deadline is non-negotiable and that failure to comply would attract stricter administrative and legal sanctions against the responsible officials.
PAC also questioned why the assembly’s internal audit mechanisms failed to detect and prevent the unauthorised transfer of the funds.
The committee has further asked the assembly to submit a detailed report on the recovery process by next month.