ECG Grilled by PAC Over GHS 189m Budget Overruns
The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has come under intense scrutiny from Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) over what lawmakers describe as massive budget overruns and fiscal indiscipline.
Appearing before the Committee, the company’s Chief Executive Officer and management team were questioned over unapproved spending totalling GH¢189.2 million, as captured in the 2024 Auditor-General’s Report.
Ranking Member of the Committee, Samuel Atta Mills, criticised the company’s financial conduct, accusing ECG of breaching budgetary controls and failing to comply with public financial management rules.
“On staff fuel, ECG budgeted GH¢2.8 million but spent GH¢3.6 million. Did they drive around the world?” the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) MP quizzed, as he highlighted several instances of excessive expenditure.
According to the Auditor-General’s findings, ECG overshot allocations across multiple expenditure lines:
Communication expenses: Budgeted at GH¢4.2 million; spent GH¢7.9 million.
Consultancy: Budgeted at GH¢40 million; spent GH¢58.6 million.
Industrial relations: Budgeted at GH¢2 million; spent GH¢13 million.
Stakeholder expenses: Budgeted at GH¢3.1 million; spent GH¢49 million.
Publicity: Budgeted at GH¢5.7 million; spent GH¢21.8 million.
Professional fees and subscriptions: Budgeted at GH¢731,000; spent GH¢1.5 million.
Overseas travel: Budgeted at GH¢14 million; spent GH¢29.8 million.
Call centre operations: Budgeted at GH¢23.5 million; spent GH¢29.3 million.
In total, ECG’s approved budget of GH¢144 million ballooned to GH¢333 million representing an overspend of more than 130 percent.
Mr Atta Mills called the development “a clear case of financial recklessness,” urging that sanctions under Section 96 of the Public Financial Management Act (Act 921) be applied against the officers responsible.
“This level of recklessness cannot go unpunished. Those managers who were involved should face the Attorney-General for prosecution,” he asserted.
The revelations have reignited public debate over ECG’s financial discipline and operational efficiency, particularly as the utility provider continues to lobby the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) for upward adjustments in electricity tariffs amid growing consumer dissatisfaction over erratic power supply and billing concerns.
