The Ghana Revenue Authority has denied allegations made by Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, that its Commissioner-General absconded following President Nana Akufo-Addo’s directives for an investigation into the revenue assurance contract between the GRA and Strategic Mobilisation Limited (SML).
On January 10, the North Tongu MP claimed on his Facebook page that GRA’s Commissioner-General, Rev. Dr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, fled the country with his family less than twenty-four hours after the president called for investigations to be conducted.
However, the GRA stated in a statement on January 11 that the Commissioner-General is currently on leave, which was approved almost a month ago and that he is expected back in the office on January 15.
The statement also clarified that every engagement required of him or GRA in the audit by KPMG is being diligently attended to either by himself or one of the commissioners.
On January 2, President Akufo-Addo ordered the immediate suspension of the revenue assurance contract signed between the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Strategic Mobilization Ghana Ltd (SML) and appointed the audit, tax, and advisory services firm, KPMG, to conduct an immediate audit of the transaction.
The GRA demanded an apology from Ablakwa, describing his allegations as misrepresentations of facts and malicious. In their statement, they stated that Ablakwa’s publication was a total misrepresentation of facts and a deliberate attempt to damage the reputation of the Commissioner-General and the GRA as a whole. They also demanded an immediate retraction of the publication from all media platforms.
