PAC CHAIR PLEADS FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR VOLTA STAR TEXTILES

The Auditor-General Report on Public Accounts of Ghana Public Boards, Corporations and Other Statutory Institutions for the period ended 31st December 2022 has revealed that Volta Star Textiles Limited is virtually on the brink of collapsing after ending the 2021 financial year with a deficit of GH¢3,105,433 as compared to a deficit of GH¢3,015,925 recorded in 2020, representing a decline of 3.0%.

Volta Star Textiles Limited located at Juapong in the Volta Region is currently indebtedness to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for the supply of electricity stood at GH¢9,805,456, as at the end of 2021, representing 40% of its total outstanding obligations.

In addition, the company failed to pay its creditors to the tune of GH¢3,797,873 at the end of the 2021 financial year.
All these came to light when the Ministry of Trade and Industry and its agencies appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today in Parliament.

According to the report, Management attributed this anomaly of the company to inadequate funds to meet their obligations.

“The Company may be compelled to close down or halt operations if ECG decides to cut off the electricity supply in a bid to recover its outstanding debt”.

However, the Chairman of the Committee, Hon. James Klutse Avedzi appealed passionately to the Government through the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Hon. Michael Okyere Baafi to financially support the Company before it finally goes bankrupt.

Meanwhile, the Chairperson of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) Kathleen Addy has appealed to the Committee to help the Commission acquire a new office. In the interim, the Commission is asking the Electoral Commission (EC) to allocate some of its vacated offices to the Commission to ease their work.

Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology, Innovation, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Railway Development, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Office of Government Machinery, Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture and their various agencies also appeared before the Committee.