Akufo-Addo to authorize publication of KPMG report

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will reportedly release the full KPMG report on the revenue guarantee contract between the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Strategic Mobilization Limited (SML).

It would be recalled that President Akufo-Addo ordered KPMG to investigate the GRA/SML deal, after allegations of corruption were made in relation to the deal.

KPMG submitted its report to the president in April 2024, but only sections of the report, including recommendations, were made public, leading to much criticism, with many accusing the president of protecting certain people in his government.

It was also reported that the Office of the President rejected a right to information request for the release of the report.

However, according to information obtained by asaaseradio.com, a source close to the presidency has indicated that Akufo-Addo will most likely exercise his discretion and authorize the release of the KPMG report.

The source is reported to have said that the release of the report is a “mere matter of time” and that the president is happy to authorize the release of the report because there is nothing to hide.

The source also stated that the statement issued by the Presidency on the KPMG report essentially covers the substance of the KPMG report.

“I can say with authority that both the letter to GRA and the presidency’s press release on the KPMG report on the GRA-SML deal captured, without omission, the substance and essence of all the material findings. It is important to add that the President did not give his recommendations to the GRA but rather the entirety, without reservation, of all KPMG recommendations.

“President Akufo-Addo simply conveyed everything that KPMG recommended be done with respect to the SML contracts, including the cancellation of two of them, the suspension of two others and the renegotiation of the variable tariff of the one that was recommended to be maintained but it was modified to have a fixed fee. fees,” Asaase News’ source in the presidency said.

Background:

President Akufo-Addo, in a press statement released by the Director of Communications at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin, instructed the GRA and the Ministry of Finance to renegotiate the SML contract.

The president emphasized that the renegotiation must be closely monitored and periodically evaluated to ensure that it meets expectations.

“There is a clear need for the oil audit services provided by SML. GRA and the State have benefited from these services since SML began providing them. There has been an increase in volumes of 1.7 billion liters and an increase in tax revenues for KPMG also noted that there were qualitative benefits, including 24/7 real-time electronic monitoring of outputs and partial monitoring of inputs of petroleum products into warehouses where SML had installed flow meters, and six levels of reconciliation carried out by SML.

“This minimizes the occurrence of under-declarations. However, it is important to review the contract for petroleum audit services, in particular the fee structure. Given SML’s experience and competence over the last four years in providing this service , the President has ordered that the fee structure be changed from a variable to a fixed fee structure. Other provisions of the contract worth reviewing include clauses on intellectual property rights, termination and service delivery expectations,” he wrote.

The decision to renegotiate the contract follows the chairman’s acceptance of KPMG’s recommendation following its audit of the deal.

The audit findings generated the need for a review of the income guarantee contract, highlighting areas where improvements are necessary to improve its effectiveness.

On January 2, 2024, President Nana Akufo-Addo commissioned KPMG to investigate the contract between SML and GRA, prompted by a complaint by media outlet The Fourth Estate.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has since received the KPMG audit report on the revenue mobilization contract between GRA and SML.

The report was delivered to him on Wednesday, March 27, as Eugene Arhin, Director of Communications for the Presidency, announced in a Facebook post on Wednesday, April 3.

BAI/AE

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