EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF POLITICAL INFLUENCES ON THE PROCUREMENT FUNCTIONS OF DISTRICT ASSEMBLIES IN GHANA

Procurement functions in most District, Municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies in Ghana are the preserve of the political appointees who head these institutions and often see purchases as a way of giving jobs to political party affiliates rather than using procurement practice to achieve organizational goals also, majority of staffs do not hold professional procurement qualification thereby failing to align procurement practices with organizational goals. As a result, most of these functions are not carried out by designated procurement staff, moreover, procurement staffs are consulted too late in the procurement process. From the foregoing, there appeared to be the widespread violation of the procurement law and one is not too sure of the procurement strategies being implemented by these districts, municipal and metropolitan assemblies. The study was therefore to investigate the effects of political influences on the procurement functions of district assemblies in Ghana. It was revealed that political interferences had significant effects on the procurement functions of district assemblies in Ghana. Political influences in district assembly procurement were seen in the areas of selection of suppliers/contractors, selection of procurement officials, procurement process circumventions, and the choice of projects. The effects of these influences include Selection of poor quality suppliers, Employment of poor quality procurement officials, Lack of transparency in procurement processes, and Increase in the costs of procurement of goods.