Lecturers at the University of Ghana are calling for the resignation of the Auditor-General, Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, following a recent audit report that accused the university of overstating employee compensation by GH¢59.2 million.
At a press conference held on Tuesday, May 20, Dr. Jerry Joe Harrison, Secretary of the University of Ghana Chapter of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG-UG), strongly criticized the Auditor-General’s conduct, describing the report as flawed and unethical. He argued that the audit findings were made public without affording the university the opportunity to respond or provide clarification.
“This is a serious breach of the ethical standards required for this profession. For such a basic ethical ethos to be ignored clearly smacks of incompetence and/or mischief,” Dr. Harrison stated. He added that if the Auditor-General does not step down voluntarily, UTAG-UG will formally petition the President for his removal.
The audit report, which covers financial reviews from 2020 to 2023, alleged that the university submitted employee compensation claims totaling GH¢1.09 billion between 2022 and 2024. However, after verification, only GH¢1.03 billion was validated, revealing a GH¢59.2 million discrepancy, which the report labeled as overstatement.
The University of Ghana, however, has firmly rejected the allegation. Acting Deputy Internal Auditor, Prof. Samuel Simpson, described the report as misleading and lacking proper context. In an interview with MyJoyOnline, he explained that the flagged amounts represented legitimate use of internally generated funds (IGF), not fraud.
According to Prof. Simpson, the university sometimes supplements government payroll allocations with IGF to ensure adequate staffing for quality education delivery. “If the Government of Ghana can only pay two staff but the university needs five to maintain teaching standards, the university may use its own IGF to cover the additional staff. That is not payroll fraud,” he explained.
He further stressed that all expenditures were properly documented and that the audit report failed to reflect the full process. “The report overlooks important engagements and approvals that go into financial decisions. There is no basis to conclude that the university engaged in any payroll fraud.”
Dr. Harrison also condemned what he described as the misuse of audits to disallow legitimate claims from subvented institutions. He demanded that such practices cease immediately and called for disciplinary action against all individuals involved in the disputed audit.
As tension between the university and the Auditor-General’s office escalates, the University of Ghana has indicated that an official response from management will be released soon to further clarify its position and defend its financial practices.