Accra: The Audit Service has denied issuing an apology for allegedly overstating Ghana's public debt by GHS138.91 billion in its 2024 Auditor-General's report. A statement signed by Madam Ama Awotwe-Bosumafi, Assistant Auditor-General, Public Relations Unit of the Audit Service, emphasized that no such apology or statement had been made by the office regarding information published in their reports.

According to Ghana News Agency, the statement clarified that the Auditor-General observed a discrepancy during its review between total public debt figures reported by the Controller and Accountant-General's Department, which was GHS876.08 billion, and the Ministry of Finance, which reported GHS737.17 billion. This discrepancy resulted in an overstatement of GHS138.91 billion.

The statement attributed the variance to data aggregation errors, the inclusion of unverified obligations, and poor coordination between the Ministry of Finance, the Controller and Accountant-General's Department, and COCOBOD regarding debt consolidation. It described a publication by Ghana Today as a misrepresentation of paragraphs 13-18 of the Public Accounts of Ghana, which highlighted discrepancies in debt figures reported by the two government agencies.

The post falsely quoted the Auditor-General as stating, 'We overstated Ghana's total public debt by GHS138.9 billion in our 2024 report. We apologise for this oversight - Auditor-General.' The Audit Service's statement labeled this information as inaccurate and urged all Ghanaians and stakeholders to view the publication as mischievous.

The Audit Service also called on media organizations and individuals wishing to republish its reports to verify facts thoroughly. It reminded the public that all Auditor-General reports have been duly submitted to Parliament in line with Article 187(5) of the 1992 Constitution and are available on the Audit Service website.