Mr. Kwame Kumi was a lawyer and accountant as well as the CEO of a state-owned enterprise (SOE). The SOE operated in the fruit juices manufacturing industry. For the three (3) years Mr. Kumi headed the SOE, their financial performance soared and were highly commended by the state. The predecessor of Mr. Kumi was Mr. Kofi Bibini who was tagged with the label that he was incompetent and corrupt. Mr. Bibini ran the SOE as his personal property. He recruited family members and friends at will, engaged in self-dealing and insider trading and more. The rot was so much that the court of public opinion called for his sack. Mr. Kwame Kumi on the other hand was determined to be a different leader. He became the epitome of a good Ghanaian CEO who can successfully run a state institution. With this confidence and trust reposed in him, the CEO was determined to help the SOE rake in more financial gains during his reign. He therefore entered an investment contract with a foreign-private company in the petroleum sector, although that was ultra vires to their core mandate. The intended investment was clearly a risky one but the expected returns were very attractive. However, if it will bring in substantial returns then no harm done, right? Thus, Mr. Kumi went ahead with the investment move on the blind side of governmental bodies mandated to approve such business deals with SOE funds. In the first 2 years, the returns were positive and made the books of the SOE look very good. In the subsequent years to follow, there were exponentially negative returns making the SOE lose millions of dollars of state funds, but their financial statements failed to disclose these. Mr. Kumi thought of investing in other ‘so-called’ lucrative ventures that promise to yield substantial returns in a short time to make up for the losses so that the previous bad investment would be swept under the carpet undetected. When an employee blew the whistle, journalists became very interested in the issue and investigated to find out that the SOE was now in tatters. The court of public scrutiny and the political parties of both the incumbent government and of the opposition parties are calling for a serious look into the matter. State institutions who by their core mandate also have a locus in the matter are demanding for accountability and due process is imminent.
Questions:
a) With reference to relevant quotes in the case, identify and explain into detail four (4) forms of accountability featuring in the case. [12 Marks]
b) With your proof from the case, discuss with relevant examples the category of public official Mr. Kofi Bibini identifies with according to Ayee (2000). [4 Marks]
c) Explain with relevant examples two (2) broad mechanisms for promoting accountability in a democratic nation such as Ghana.
