By Issah Olegor
A Ghanaian citizen has launched a major constitutional challenge at the Supreme Court seeking to halt the disbursement of District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) monies to Members of Parliament, arguing that the long-standing practice violates the Constitution and undermines public financial accountability.
Dr. Yaw Twerefour, through his lawyer, Diana Asonaba Dapaah of Sam Okudzeto & Associates, has filed a writ before the apex court challenging both the allocation of portions of the DACF to Members of Parliament and the alleged practice of paying such funds directly into MPs’ personal bank accounts.
The legal action, which could have significant implications for the management of public funds and the relationship between Parliament and local government structures, seeks a series of declarations and orders aimed at ending what the applicant describes as an unconstitutional use of resources intended exclusively for District Assemblies.
As part of the proceedings, Dr. Twerefour has also filed an application for an interlocutory injunction seeking to immediately restrain the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund and the Minister for Finance from authorising or effecting any further payments from the DACF to Members of Parliament until the substantive case is finally determined by the Supreme Court.
The suit names four state institutions and officials as defendants. They are the Attorney-General, the Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund, the Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and religious Affairs and the Minister for Finance.
Challenge To Long-Standing DACF Practice
At the centre of the case is a long-standing arrangement under which portions of the District Assemblies Common Fund are reportedly allocated to Members of Parliament under various expenditure categories, including Constituency Monitoring and Evaluation and Constituency Labour Projects.
According to Dr. Twerefour, documents obtained through Ghana’s Right to Information (RTI) Act revealed that specific allocations from the DACF are earmarked for MPs as a defined component of the fund’s distribution formula approved by Parliament.
The applicant argues that while the Constitution establishes the DACF as a mechanism for supporting local governance and development through District Assemblies, portions of the fund are allegedly being diverted to Members of Parliament contrary to the constitutional purpose for which the fund was created.
He further contends that these monies are not only allocated to MPs but are also paid directly into their personal bank accounts.
According to the affidavit supporting the injunction application, the funds involved constitute substantial public resources that may become difficult to track, audit or recover once transferred into private accounts.
Dr. Twerefour argues that such a system creates significant risks regarding transparency, accountability and the proper use of public funds.
Public Interest And Constitutional Concerns
The applicant maintains that the matter goes beyond a simple administrative dispute and raises fundamental constitutional questions concerning public financial management and governance.
In his affidavit, he argues that the continued payment of DACF monies into the personal accounts of legislators creates the risk of dissipation of public funds and may cause irreparable harm if allowed to continue pending the final determination of the case.
According to him, preserving the funds while the constitutional questions are resolved is necessary to protect the public interest and maintain confidence in the management of state resources.
He further contends that once such monies are disbursed into personal accounts, tracing their use becomes difficult and recovering them, if later found to have been unlawfully paid, may be practically impossible.
Injunction Application Set For Hearing
The motion for interlocutory injunction is expected to be moved before the Supreme Court on June 23, 2026.
The application seeks an order restraining the Administrator of the DACF and the Minister for Finance from approving, authorising or permitting the transfer of any monies from the Common Fund to Members of Parliament under any designation, including MPs Common Fund, Constituency Labour Projects, Constituency Labour Monitoring and Evaluation, or any similar arrangement.
The applicant is also seeking a specific order preventing any DACF monies from being paid into the personal bank accounts of MPs pending the final outcome of the constitutional action.
Eleven Constitutional Reliefs Sought
Beyond the injunction application, Dr. Twerefour is asking the Supreme Court to grant eleven substantive reliefs that challenge the legality of the entire arrangement.
Foremost among these is a declaration that the District Assemblies Common Fund, as established under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, is exclusively intended for the benefit, administration and utilisation of District Assemblies and not Members of Parliament or any other entity.
He is also seeking a declaration that any formula approved for distributing DACF resources that allocates portions to MPs is inconsistent with Article 252 and therefore unconstitutional, null and void.
The suit further challenges the alleged payment of DACF monies into MPs’ personal accounts, arguing that the practice violates both Article 252 and Article 187 of the Constitution, which deals with the audit responsibilities of the Auditor-General.
According to the applicant, the movement of public funds from institutional accounts into private custody undermines effective auditing and weakens constitutional safeguards intended to ensure accountability in public financial administration.
Claims Of Weak Oversight And Traceability
Dr. Twerefour further argues that the practice creates a system vulnerable to misapplication, diversion and financial loss.
The suit contends that transferring public funds into personal accounts reduces transparency and weakens mechanisms for ensuring that monies are spent for their intended purposes.
The applicant also argues that the arrangement is inconsistent with Ghana’s constitutional framework for decentralisation because it allegedly shifts financial control away from District Assemblies, which are constitutionally mandated to manage local development resources.
Call For Audit And Recovery Of Funds
One of the most far-reaching aspects of the lawsuit is a request for the Supreme Court to direct the Auditor-General to conduct a comprehensive audit of all DACF monies previously disbursed to Members of Parliament.
The proposed audit would examine how such funds were utilized and whether appropriate accountability measures were observed.
The applicant is also seeking an order requiring the recovery of all monies that may have been unlawfully disbursed from the DACF to MPs through personal or other accounts.
Additionally, the suit asks the court to compel state authorities to ensure that all future DACF disbursements are made strictly through designated public accounts of District Assemblies in accordance with the Constitution and the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).
Broader Debate On Public Financial Management
The case is expected to reignite long-standing discussions about the role of Members of Parliament in constituency development and the use of public funds for projects within electoral constituencies.
For years, questions have been raised about the legal and administrative basis for allocations made to MPs from the Common Fund, with advocates arguing that legislators require resources to monitor and support development projects within their constituencies.
Critics, however, have consistently maintained that MPs are lawmakers and not spending authorities, and therefore should not directly control public development funds.
The Supreme Court’s eventual determination of the case could therefore have significant implications for the future administration of the District Assemblies Common Fund, the powers of Members of Parliament in local development financing and the broader framework of public financial accountability in Ghana.
