Month: August 2011

Parliament on Monday failed to discuss a 3 billion credit facility from the China Development Bank on its first day of extraordinary sitting.

Parliament was called from recess after four weeks to consider the loan that is expected to finance a number of projects in the country.

Majority Leader, Mr Cletus Avoka said the item which was the first on the order paper could not be laid because the joint committee report of Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and that of Poverty Reduction Strategy was not ready.

He appealed to Mr Doe Adjaho, the First Deputy Speaker who stood for the Speaker, to defer the laying of the papers to the next sitting on Tuesday. Government of Ghana is seeking a 3 billion US dollar Master Facility agreement between the government of Ghana and the China Development Bank to finance infrastructure development projects under the Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda (GSGDA).

A statement released by Mr Okudzeto Ablakwa said the projects include: the Western Corridor Gas Infrastructure Project, Western Corridor ‘Petroleum Terminal’ Project, Western Corridor ‘Oil Enclave’ Toll Road Project, Western Corridor Railway Line Modernization Project- Takoradi-Kumasi, Dunkwa-Awaso Railway Line, Retrofit Phase 1, Western Corridor Infrastructure Renewal project- Takoradi Port Retrofit Phase 1, Sekondi Free Zone Project- Shared Infrastructure, Utility Services and Accra Plains Irrigation Project.

The rest are: Coastal Fishing Harbours and Landing Sites Re-development Project (Axim, Dixcove, Elmina, Winneba, Mumford, Senya-Beraku, Jamestown, Teshie, Tema, Ada, Keta), Eastern Corridor Multi-Modal Transportation Project- Upgrade of Volta Lake Ferries, Pontoons + Landing sites (Kpando-Amankwakrom; Kete Krachi-Kwadokrom; Yeji-Makongo; Tapa Abotoase; Dzemeni), Upgrade of Akosombo and Buipe Ports, Accra Metropolitan Area ICT- Enhanced Traffic Management Project (including urgent road completion components) and SME Projects Incubation Facility.

The House had the second reading of the Ghana Maritime Security Amendment Bill 2011, Ghana Maritime Authority Amendment Bill 2011 and the Ghana Shipping Amendment Bill 2011. The object of the Maritime Security Bill 2011 is to extend the application of the Ghana Maritime Security to Act 2004 (Act 675) to cover fixed and mobile offshore drilling units and other marine installations in an area within Ghana’s maritime jurisdiction.

It also seeks the opportunity to include in the Act International Maritime Organisation (IMO) requirements in the area of maritime security under SOLAS.

The purpose of the Maritime Authority Amendment Bill 2011 bill is to amend the Ghana Maritime Authority Act 2002 (Act 630) to fix specific levies, fees and charges to cover administrative cost of the Authority.

Source: GNA

The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Kwesi Ahwoi and four other members of the Agona East constituency branch of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have declared their intention to contest the forth coming parliamentary primary.

Eric Kobina Turkson, Manager of Dukes Petroleum Company, George Yankah of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and Martin Luther Obeng, District Chief Executive for Agona East are the other contestants.

The Constituency Secretary, Samuel Oscar Mensah, told journalists that Maame Pokuah Sawyer, a real estate developer had picked her nomination forms and paid GH¢200 for it.

He said the aspirant would also pay GH¢2,000 when returning the completed forms as demanded by the rules and regulations of the party.

He said the others who had declared their intention are yet to pick up their forms. Mr. Mensah said members wishing to contest the primary had between August 15 and September 15 to collect and submit their completed forms.

He appealed to Mrs. Sawyer to conduct a clean campaign devoid of insults, character assassination and division to ensure peace and tranquility in the NDC. Meanwhile, executives of the constituency have denied allegations of bribery leveled against them.

Oscar Mensah told journalists it is not true that eight of them collected GH¢5,000 from a female parliamentary aspirant to support her candidature.

He described the allegation as a calculated attempt to throw dust into eyes of party members in the Agona East constituency.

Mr. Mensah said no executive member had received the said amount from any of the five aspirants as being peddled in the constituency by some leading members of the NDC. He said those peddling the falsehood should stop because it could breed disunity and hatred in the party.

A Tamale based business magnate, William Majeed Mahama, has blamed Members of Parliament from the three regions of the north for the under-developed nature of northern Ghana.

He said MPs from northern Ghana lacked the political will to push successive governments to fulfill their campaign promises to the people of the area.

According to William Majeed, the people of northern Ghana will continue to languish in abject poverty unless their MPs especially those whose party is in power whip the government to fulfill some of its major campaign promises.

Mr Mahama was contributing to the topic, “Bridging the yawning gap between northern and southern Ghana: the role of stakeholders from the north” at a symposium in Tamale.

He commended the NDC government for initiating the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) programme but was quick to state that it will have no positive impact on the people of northern Ghana if government does not allocate the required resources needed for its smooth implementation.

William Majeed Mahama charged the Mills-Mahama administration to explain to the good people of northern Ghana why it deposited only Gh¢ 8 million into the SADA kitty instead of the Gh¢ 25 million that was captured on the 2011 supplementary budget.

“SADA is an unquestionable programme that is geared towards bridging the developmental gap between the north and south. Government promised a certain seed capital towards this programme and so far only eight million Ghana cedis has been paid into SADA account, why?”

The Tamale based business magnate charged chiefs in northern Ghana to emulate the shining examples of their southern colleagues who have initiated self help projects to alleviate the plight of their people.

William Majeed Mahama impressed upon the chiefs to place premium on education by establishing endowment funds to help needy but brilliant students acquire higher academic qualifications to help them qualify for well-paying jobs.

“Until we get a political, social and traditional leadership that will truly represent us and inspire and reorient the mentality of our people towards development, central governments handouts would continue to be white elephants” he observed.

Source: Citifmonline.Com

Parliament has once again postponed debate on the three billion dollar Chinese loan agreement.

The report on the facility from the China Development Fund could not be laid because the Joint Committee on Finance and Poverty Reduction which examined the agreement was unable to conclude its work.

Joy FM’s Parliamentary Correspondent Sammy Darko reported that the MPs are asking for more time because the document covering the agreement is voluminous.

The Minority which has already objected to the deal is yet to officially state why.

Sammy Darko who has been interacting with the MPs however says they are basing their objection on two main points.

According to him, some of the MPs say the agreement is lacking in detail and appears to be an attempt by government to seek a blanket approval to spend the $3 billion as it pleases.

The $3 billion is going to come in two tranches – first, $1.5 billion and the remaining half coming later.

It is the Minority’s contention that although the agreement has stated 12 projects into which the money would go, there is no specificity regarding how much is going into which project.

They also argue that one of the conditions of the agreement is that the Chinese will get exclusive access to the country’s crude oil but the actual volumes they are entitled to and at what price the nation will sell the oil to the Chinese have not been clearly stated.

The Chairman of the Finance Committee, James Avedzi, while saying the concerns of the Minority are not being ignored, maintained that some of their arguments are unsustainable.

“When Parliament approves this $3 billion facility, since the individual projects are not yet before the House, anytime they conclude work on the individual projects, they must come back to the House for members to approve,” he said.

Responding to the Minority’s concerns about the quantum of oil the Chinese are entitled to, Mr Avedzi said, “If already we are getting people willing to buy the oil we should be happy.”

The concern, he said, should rather be to ensure that the price at which the product is sold is not to the disadvantage of the nation.

“We should not be concerned that we have people ready to buy [our] oil; we have the oil which we are selling and we are getting ready market and we are crying foul? Let’s give a break to what is happening this country,!” he snapped.

Source: Myjoyonline.com

Parliamentarians are today Monday 22nd August 2011, convening to approve a $3 billion loan facility from the China Development Bank.

The facility which is the first tranche of dividends from President Mills visit to China in September 2010 is expected to accelerate the infrastructural expansion and industrial take-off Ghana has been awaiting.

According to government, some of the key projects that the facility will be used for are:

1. Western Corridor Gas Infrastructure Project,

2. Western Corridor ‘Petroleum Terminal’ Project,

3. Western Corridor ‘Oil Enclave’ Toll Road Project

4. Western Corridor Railway Line Modernization Project- Takoradi-Kumasi; Dunkwa-Awaso Railway Line, Retrofit Phase 1,

5. Western Corridor Infrastructure Renewal project- Takoradi Port Retrofit Phase 1,

6. Sekondi Free Zone Project- Shared Infrastructure and Utility Services,

7. Accra Plains irrigation Project,

8. Coastal Fishing Harbours and Landing Sites Re-development Project (Axim, Dixcove, Elmina, Winneba, Mumford, Senya- Beraku, Jamestown, Teshie, Tema, Ada, Keta),

9. Eastern Corridor Multi-Modal Transportation Project- Upgrade of Volta Lake Ferries, Pontoons + Landing sites (Kpando-Amankwakrom; Kete Krachi-Kwadokrom; Yeji-Makongo; Tapa Abotoase; Dzemeni),

10. Upgrade of Akosombo and Buipe Ports,

11. Accra Metropolitan Area ICT- Enhanced Traffic Management Project (including urgent road completion components) and an

12. SME Projects Incubation Facility.

Government has in the last week presented these projects to Parliament’s Finance Committee at a special two-day session in Koforidua, where Ministers of State took turns to explain projects in their respective sectors.

Parliamentary is expected to debate the transaction from the 22nd to the 26th of August, 2011 after which a final decision will be taken on the transaction.

By : Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh

The Vice Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, Kweku Agyemang Manu says under no circumstances must the Committee be dragged into politics and unnecessary propaganda.

According to him, the Committee sits to protect state resources and it should not be seen as though it’s a political wing of a party or part of government machinery.

He expressed the sentiments in the wake of the recent allegation by some government officials that the Public Accounts Committee was being mischievous and had deliberately hidden the Auditor General’s report that indicted the former Minister of Information Stephen Asamoah Boateng who is alleged to have misappropriated funds and given huge sums of money to selected media personnel to do the bidding of the then ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) prior to the 2008 elections.

Despite several explanations from the Chairman and other high ranking members of the Public Accounts Committee that such a report had not yet been laid before them, some government officials including the Deputy Minister of Information, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa continued to impugn that the committee which is currently chaired by an NPP member intentionally left out that report to avoid the former appointees being scrutinized.

However speaking on Joy FM News programme over the weekend, the Vice Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee who is also the MP for Dormaa West, Kweku Agyemang Manu, stated that claim by the Deputy Minister was a serious indictment on the Committee which has thirteen members of the ruling NDC government including the substantive Minister of Information as members.

“I don’t see how NDC members on this august committee will connive with us the NPP, to hide such a serious report if indeed it had been put before the committee’’ he said.

Hon. Agyemang Manu added that the Public Accounts Committee is working in the best interest of the state and will not engage in any acts that will undermine good governance in the country, adding that the Committee has advised that the Speaker of Parliament personally sees to the establishment of the Financial Tribunal to retrieve monies embezzled by public officials.

By: Kwadwo Anim/ghanamps.gov.gh