Accra, February 1, 2018- An eight-member Board of the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) has been inaugurated.
Inaugurating the board, the Deputy Minister of Finance, in charge of Budget, Hon. Abena Osei-Asare, said the petroleum industry was expected to grow after the ITLOS boundary ruling in favor of Ghana. This she said would bring on board more oil fields that would require an increased oversight responsibility of PIAC.
Hon. Osei-Asare assured board members of the Ministry’s commitment to ensuring that the board was well resourced to play its oversight role, as an institution mandated to promote transparency and accountability, in the management of petroleum revenue in Ghana.
The Deputy Minister thanked the outgoing Board for a good work done and urged the members of the incoming Board to work as a team, bringing to bear their experiences, ideas and innovation in ensuring accountability and transparency in the management of oil revenues in Ghana.
Dr. Stephen Emmanuel Manteyaw a Board member, on behalf of his colleagues thanked the Deputy Minister for the confidence and honour done them. He assured government of the Board’s commitment to uphold the tenets and spirit of the mandate imposed on them.
He said the Board would, “ensure citizen’s access to information and management of petroleum revenues and provide a platform for public debate on spending options of oil revenues, and would conduct an independent assessment and use of the oil revenues.”
Dr. Manteyaw further assured Ghanaians that the Board would ensure that the exploitation of petroleum resources will ultimately benefit citizens, through accountability and transparency.
Board members sworn in were Joseph Winful, Dr. Roland Affail Monney, and Dr. Thomas Kojo Stephens. The rest are Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni Frempong, Alhaji Alhassan Abdulai, and Noble Wadzah. The Board Chairman will be elected at the Board’s maiden meeting.
The Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC) is an independent statutory body mandated to promote transparency and accountability in the management of petroleum revenues in Ghana. - END -