The study seeks to contribute to the discussion on the causes of maverick buying-MB and its impact on the procurement policy and the economy of Ghana in general. The research methodology used in this study is qualitative. The instrument of study was based on non standard interview with the officers that are experts on the topic at the district assemblies where 11 districts assemblies were covered out of 22. The study revealed the following causes; procurement practitioners find it difficult to understand the Procurement Act 663, practitioners lack capacity both academically and professionally in the management and operationalisation of the procurement process, the Procurement Act 663 is excessively legalistic and technical, the Act 663 is at anomalous with market trends or practices. The study also found out that there are lapses in monitoring for compliance of the Procurement Act 663, no examples of known procurement practitioners punished for non compliance, lack of commitment on the part of officialdom, organisational culture at the district level a major cause of maverick buying and most of the procurement activities are unplanned. On the impact, the study established that MB defeats the superseding objectives of the Public Procurement Act 663 of 2003, it is also insidious to the aptitude to negotiate favourable terms for price of goods, services and works due to the crumbling of spend, MB had the ability to deny the assemblies the knack to collect data on the assemblies’ sequence of purchasing or spending thereby causing the assemblies to lose visibility over its outlay, it also increases purchasing cost where it affects equally the actual purchasing price and process cost, it was also disclosed that fraud and corruption can ensue from MB. The study recommends that PPA and the ministry of education should link up to train procurement practitioners as stipulated in Procurement Act 663 section 3(k) to improve the awareness and knowledge of procurement processes at the district assemblies and the nation in general. Monitoring compliance trends should also be a key part of the Public Procurement Authority-PPA. As a matter of fact the institution responsible for sanction should be incorporated into the enforcement unit for swift punishment to act as deterrence to others. PPA and the districts should link up on how eProcurement systems can be implemented to ensure compliance since the most commonly declare solution for maverick buying is the implementation of electronic procurement.
Keywords: District Assemblies, Ghana, Maverick Buying, Non-Compliance, Public Procurement Act 663
