Betty Mould Iddrisu Swerves PAC Over �94m Judgment Debt

A former Attorney General and Minister of Justice Betty Mould-Iddrisu disappointed the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament on Friday when she appeared before it to testify in the probe into the payment of �94 million judgment debt to a construction firm, Construction Pioneers. Mrs. Mould-Iddrisu told the Kan-Dapaah-led committee that she cannot speak to the issue because she does not have access to documents relating to the agreement. �I can�t speak and will not be able to assist this committee until I have access to documents,� the immediate past Education Minister insisted when the chairman and his members went at length to cajole her to put in a word. �It will be useful if madam had agreed to tell us something� we�re mindful of the fact that you�re not the current Attorney General, but again the Committee believes it is within the right of the Committee to invite you to give evidence and you do not need the authority of the A-G to come before us,� Hon. Kan-Dapaah stressed. Despite the chairman�s explanation, Mrs. Mould-Iddrisu was still emphatic that she needs the mandate of Dr. Benjamin Kumbuor, the current A-G to speak on issues relating to his sector and also needs to be furnished with documents on the CP agreement before she can testify. �Respectfully Mr. Chairman, I do need the mandate of the A-G to give me access to the records. I will be grateful to see the document and authenticate that it is my signature and verify. �There is a current A-G and I wonder his non-presence here. I have not been given the document and I don�t have the mandate of the A-G. I can�t speak to the document. Hon. Chairman, I�m not being difficult I just need time,� Mrs. Mould-Iddrisu pointed out. Eventually, the chairman of PAC had to compromise by saying: �We will request the A-G�s department to make copies of the document to you� the Committee is unable to force you. � Earlier, a former A-G under the Kufuor administration, Joe Ghartey appeared before the Committee to answer questions relating to the Construction Pioneer judgment debt. The Auditor General�s report contained various judgment debts including that of Construction Pioneers (CP).