In accordance with Section 86 of the Public Financial Management Act of 2016, the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) has established a 5-member Audit Committee (Act 921).
The Director-General of the Internal Audit Agency (IAA), Dr. Eric Oduro Osae, speaking at a short inaugural ceremony in Accra, congratulated members of the former Committee for their exemplary reporting and high professional standards with which they executed their mandate.
He charged the new Committee members to bring to bear their professional knowledge and expertise in their new roles. He further admonished them to work with the Board, Management, and the Internal Audit Unit of EOCO in the performance of their duties.
He added that the IAA was mainstreaming Enterprise Risk Management in all public institutions and therefore called on the committee members to support EOCO to implement good risk management strategies. This would enable the EOCO to anticipate risks even before they occur. He this regard, he noted that the firefighting way was not the way to go.
He emphasized the need also for a performance audit, stating that most institutions focused more on the financial aspect of auditing, which did not eventually make for a holistic auditing process. Dr. Oduro Osae, citing an MOU with EOCO, reiterated the support of the Internal Audit Agency in the fight against corruption.
The members of the newly inaugurated Audit Committee are Mr. Alhassan Fuseini (a representative from the IAA), Mr. Osei Kwaku Adjaye-Gyamfi (a representative from the Institute of Chartered Accountants- Ghana), Mr. Kenneth Adu-Amanfoh (Member-EOCO Board), COP George Alex Mensah (Member- EOCO Board) and the Chairman in the person of Mr. Joshua Magnus Nicol (also a representative from the IAA).
The Chairman, in his remark, assured the old Committee of their commitment to the continuation of the mandate. He further pledged that members would perform their new roles with professionalism in accordance with best practices.
The Audit Committee will ensure that the management of EOCO pursues the implementation of any recommendations contained in internal audit reports, Parliament’s decision on the Auditor-General’s Report, Auditor-General’s Management Letter; and the report of an Internal Audit Department, in relation to financial matters raised and any other related directives.
Also in attendance at the inauguration was the Executive Director of EOCO, COP. Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah and her deputies; Mr. Charles Nana Antwi and Madam Aba J. Opoku together with the Heads of the Internal Audit and Finance Units of EOCO.
COP Addo-Danquah expressed appreciation for the sterling work of the old Committee and assured the new Committee of the full support and cooperation of her administration