Kennedy Kankam
ASHANTI REGIONAL Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, says former Member of Parliament for Nhyiaeso, Kennedy Kwasi Kankam, cannot be blamed for any wrong.
Speaking to reporters in Kumasi over allegations that Kennedy Kankam had misapplied his MP’s common fund, the regional minister said no audit report had indicted the former Nhyiaeso MP.
“I have personally served as an MP for 12 years and as such I am very conversant with the guidelines and processes of utilising the common fund,” Mr. Osei Mensah emphasised.
“If an MP wants to use his common fund for an activity, he will first apply to the Chief Executive indicating the activities he wants to apply the fund for. The Chief Executive will then examine the request against the guidelines and if they are satisfied, give approval before disbursement or otherwise. No MP can access his common fund without the approval of the Chief Executive of the particular assembly. It is simply not possible.”
Earlier in the week, news broke that Mr. Kankam had misapplied his common fund by giving it out as loans to his constituents.
A purported audit report allegedly indicted his person and Absa Bank, asking them to jointly ‘vomit’ an amount of GH¢500,000.
However, Mr. Kennedy Kankam debunked the story, asserting that due process was followed and all the disbursements to the loan beneficiaries were above board.
He presented a series of letters and documents to prove his case.
The current acting Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly Mayor, who was also in office during the time of Mr. Kankam, has also indicated that the former MP has not been involved in anything illegal.
The assembly, has therefore, released a statement to clear Mr. Kankam of the evil allegations that were levelled against him.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of KMA, Osei Assibey Antwi, said “there is nothing illegal in the disbursement of the funds. What the auditors brought to us was the management letter. It only raises concerns and we had a month to reply. It is not an audit report and cannot be referred to as such. I don’t even know how this management letter got out. There is no ambiguity about the MP’s spending. Nobody gave him money in his hands to go and spend it. He made a request for repayable loans. So the money was paid to the bank and the bank administered the disbursement. There is no malfeasance involved and all the queries they raised, the assembly has answers for them. Kennedy has not committed any crime.” It appears Kennedy Kankam has attracted these allegations because sources close to Jubilee House say he is highly tipped to become the new mayor of Kumasi.
People with knowledge of appointments told this paper that Kennedy Kankam, who was also the convenor of the group, Aspirant’s Unite for Victory, is a sure bet for the KMA job.
Â