The Parliament of Ghana, Ghana Water Company Limited, Ghana Post and some other state institutions owe the Ghana Publishing Company Limited huge amounts of money that is negatively affecting the operations of company.
The Chief Accountant, Stephen Bio, who made this known in a response to a question by the deputy ranking member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament at its sitting yesterday, said that the company is not on government subvention and the failure of debtors to pay their debts was seriously affecting the viability of the company.
He could not however tell the committee how much the companies owed the Ghana Publishing Company since he did not have the records with him.
The Deputy Ranking member, Hardi Mohammed Tuferu, who is the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Nanton, wanted to know why the company has many receivables and do printing for institutions on credit.
As the accountant was narrating the predicament of the company and the institutions, which owe the company, the chairman of the committee, James Klutse Avedzi, quickly intervened to defend his outfit.
It is not bad for Parliament of Ghana to owe the company, because it is a credible and reliable institution, which always fulfills its financial obligations, he said.
He said institutions continue to offer services on credit to Parliament because it usually pays its creditors.
“We are good debtors. If you continue to sell on credit to us, we will definitely pay you,” he said
The chairman of the committee said most thriving companies usually sell on credit to their faithful clients
The deputy ranking member asked the company to find ways of reducing its receivables and also ensure that the policy is put in place to make clients pay cash before services are rendered.
The Ghana Publishing Company’s operations in 2012 ended with huge loss of GH¢117,113.
The net loss ballooned from GH¢66,485 in 2011 to GH¢117,113, which was 76.2% increase.
The newly appointed Managing Director, David Asante Boateng, was at the PAC sitting with his men to answer to queries raised in the 2015 Report of the Auditor-General.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr