The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has directed the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) to step up efforts to recover more than GH¢300,000 owed by 72 police stations and posts across the country.
The Committee said the outstanding water bills should not remain unpaid when the debt could be resolved through direct engagement with the leadership of the Ghana Police Service.
Chairperson of the PAC, Abena Osei-Asare, expressed concern that the CWSA had not taken the necessary steps to recover the money from the appropriate authorities despite the debt accumulating from water services supplied to the affected police facilities.
She directed the management of the agency to engage the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and seek his intervention to ensure that the arrears were settled.
“You think the IGP would be happy that 72 police posts or police stations owe just GH¢300,000? If you go to him today, he will write a cheque for you,” she said.
She questioned why the agency would allow a relatively modest institutional debt to remain outstanding across several police facilities instead of pursuing the matter at the appropriate leadership level.
“GH¢300,000 for 72 posts and this is how you want to embarrass the police? That 72 of their outfits owe GH¢300,000 to Community Water. You better go to the IGP and collect the money,” she added.
The PAC’s directive followed concerns raised during its sitting over unpaid bills owed to the CWSA by various institutions.
The Committee indicated that the continued accumulation of such arrears could affect the agency’s financial operations, particularly if public institutions fail to settle their bills within the required period.
The more than GH¢300,000 owed by the 72 police stations and posts represents unpaid charges for water services provided to the facilities.
The PAC’s intervention is expected to facilitate direct engagement between the CWSA and the Ghana Police Service to resolve the outstanding debt.
