Contradictions and Breaches Unveiled in KPMG Report on SML-GRA Deal

Under mounting public pressure, the government has reluctantly unveiled the KPMG report investigating the contentious contracts between Strategic Mobilization Limited (SML) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

The long-awaited revelations, released on Wednesday 22nd May, have exposed alarming details and discrepancies that challenge the government’s previous statements regarding the report. Civil society organizations and commentators have intensified their demands for accountability, urging the prosecution of government officials, including former Finance

Minister Ken Ofori Atta, as well as GRA and SML representatives implicated in the controversial deal. Edem Senanu, Co-chair of the Citizens Movement Against Corruption, has called for repercussions for the evident breaches within the contracts.

Discord emerged from the report, contradicting the government’s claim that SML received GHc1,061,054,778.00 for its services, revealing instead that the company actually received GHc1,400,202.403.56 billion between 2018 and 2023.

Furthermore, KPMG highlighted that GRA engaged in six service agreements with SML using the single-source method without the requisite approval from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA).

The report divulged a discrepancy in the number of contracts, with the government asserting three contracts while KPMG identified six agreements, covering the monitoring and auditing of revenue within the petroleum sector.

The absence of parliamentary approval for contracts exceeding one year, as per the Public Financial Management Act, raises serious concerns about procedural oversights.

Notably, the contracts lacked PPA authorization and the endorsement of the then GRA board. SML failed to pay taxes on the fees received from GRA, accumulating a substantial tax liability estimated at GH₵31.88 million.

The report detailed GRA’s failure to deduct Value Added Tax and Withholding Tax, leading to an outstanding tax debt owed by SML to GRA. The historical context provided by KPMG sheds light on the evolution of SML, emphasizing GRA’s unsuccessful attempts to obtain PPA approval for services provided by the company.

In the wake of public scrutiny, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo authorized KPMG to investigate the contracts, underscoring concerns that the agreements may not have served the state’s best interests.

Following persistent demands for transparency, the government initially cited exemptions under the Right to Information Act to withhold the report but later reversed its stance, attributing the publication to the imperative of transparency and accountability.

The release of the report has reignited calls for accountability and raised pressing questions about the integrity of the SML-GRA deal.

As stakeholders digest the implications of the KPMG findings, the spotlight remains on the government officials and entities implicated in the controversial contracts, fueling demands for justice and accountability in the wake of these revelations.