59 ‘Ghost’ Accounts Unmasked At NLA . . . As Awuku’s Nightmares Begin
The National Organiser of the ruling NPP, Sammy Kwabena Awuku’s appointment to the National Lottery Authority (NLA) by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo comes with a very heavy package.
The new Director-General would need to hit the ground running to deal expeditiously with the many challenges weighing down the Authority if his time there is to be successful.
Obviously to be able to affect the fortunes of the fortune house, Mr. Sammy Awuku would have to do far more than just address the working condition of the staff.
Exclusive information gathered by the Ghanaian Publisher, indicates that the NLA is neck deep in multiple challenge requiring the dexterity and experience of the newly appointed Boss to salvage.
Currently, the NLA reportedly has 59 different bank accounts, which makes it difficult to effectively track the finances of the company during account taking.
The new Director-General would therefore have to consolidate the different bank accounts to a manageable number to ensure efficiency and prudence.
It is also alleged that some NLA personnel of the institution are not staff of the Authority but rather work for the Authority’s technical service providers.
It is further alleged that although the services such personnel provide is not directly linked to the NLA they still draw salaries thereby stretching the finances of the Authority.
Presently, the NLA is involved in a legal tussle and spends GHc 80, 000.00 on a case in which the complainant had sued for only GH24, 000.00
In another development, the Authority is reported to have lost a case at a High Court and then at the Appelas Court in which the complainant sued NLA for GH20, 000.00
After the two defeats, the courts charged NLA to pay GH450,000.00 to the complainant, strangely the lawyers of NLA are advising the Authority to go ahead and challenge the ruling at the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, NLA pays a law firm, Zoe, Akyea and Co Legal Practioners, a monthly retainer of GH5, 000.00, yet this firm has never been tasked by the Authority to represent them in any legal suit in the past two years that the contract came into existence.
The Auditor-General, in his 2020 report, stated that there are several lawsuits pending at various law courts with most complainants demanding various sums of monies from the NLA.
Incidentally, in the midst of this quagmire, the NLA appears to have misplaced its priority when it come to its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
The workers complained that though the elevator at the NLA Fortune House has been out of service for years, the Authority chose to provide an elevator to the Ghana Police Service at a cost of GH1Million.
Additionally information also indicates that many of the staff have rented out their official accommodations at Dansoman, Adentan and Sakumono with some taking three times what they are being charged by the NLA.
Some have also reportedly converted their residences into crèche to make extra cash at the expense of the Authority.
The paper also gathered that the NLA is being bled through inflation of the cost of items sometimes over 100% of the asking price.
For instance, the NLA is reported to have bought a Drawing Machine for GH8.7 million when the actual cost is just about GH1.2 million
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