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Month: January 2019

3 District Water Supply Scheme was designed

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

 

Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah has said some actions have been initiated to expand the 3 District Water Supply Scheme among others assessment of the water production.

According to the Minister the  3 District Water Supply Scheme was designed to serve a ten year projected population and currently serving a total of one hundred and sixty-two small towns and rural communities in six Districts; Ningo-Prampram, Shai Ossudoku, Ada East, Ada West, Central Tongu and North Tongu.

“Mr. Speaker, a private investor has carried out an assessment on the system and has proposed an investment of USD 27, 600,00 to meet the current total water demand, but because of possible delays, the Ministry together with the Finance Ministry is also exploring new ways to mobilize funds to improve water production and service delivery”, she disclosed.

The Minster made this remarks when Samuel Nartey George wanted to know the current state of the expansion work on the 3 district water project now 6 district Water project.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

PAC looks at AG’s report on MDAs for year ended 31st December 2016

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament is starting its first sitting this year and would have Ghana Health Service and the Ministry of Health come before it.

In his open remarks chairman of the committee Dr. James Kluste Avedzi urged officials from the Ministry to speak the truth.

The report of the Ministries, Departments and other Agencies report would be looked at, for the year ended 31st December 2016.

In all twenty (20) health institutions across the country would appear before the committee today. Some of the institutions include regional medical stores, Ashanti region; Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Twifo Praso Hospital and Accra Psychiatric Hospital among others.

Chairman of PAC, Dr. James Kluste Averdzi wanted to know from the Deputy Minister of Health, the where about of the sector Minister Kwaku Agyeman Manu since he has never appeared before the committee despite being a former chair of the committee.

Deputy Minister Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu indicated to the committee that the Minister would join in the case of the sitting since he had some World Bank officials to attend to in his office.

The Wa Regional Health Directorate was first to appear before the committee to take questions from the committee.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority to boycott approval of 2019 budget if…Ablakwa

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

 

The Minority has given indications that they would boycott the approval of the financial policy of government ending 31st December 2019 if proper explanation is not given to the ballooning number of person working with government machinery.

According to the Ranking member on Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, as the House prepare to approve the estimate of the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government.

“We would raise this matter and scrutinize further we would put our issues strongly across, we need a ceiling the way we are going, we complain that there is no money the little money we get we are using that to pay a ballooning government?”

Mr. Samuel Okudzato Ablakwa lamented that as a nation we are always increasing the ceiling, in 2019 for government machinery we are looking at one thousand, six hundred and fourteen, where we are going is that the best way to use our scares resources.

In an interview ahead of debate on the budget estimate approval he pointed out that there are a lot of duplications and role conflict, “it is a total waste of the tax payers’ money, we cannot continue to waste the tax payers’ money.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

 

MP donates to Abesim Educational Trust Fund, Saint James Seminary

Posted on by Kwaku GhanaMPs

The Chiefs of Abesim Divisional Area in the Sunyani Municipality have received a cheque of 3,000 Ghana Cedis from the Member of Parliament, Kwasi Ameyaw-Cheremeh to support their Educational Trust Fund.

Abesim Educational Trust Fund was established by the Traditional leaders of the area to assist the brilliant but needy children in the community.

This benevolence by the MP is geared toward actualizing his vision of improving educational standards in his constituency, a move which is championed by the divisional chief and his elders.

In a related issue, the MP also donated Ten Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 10,000.00) to Saint James Seminary and Senior High School to support their 40th Anniversary.

The donations were made on behalf of the MP by the Presiding Member of Sunyani Municipal Assembly, Mr. Ansu Kumi and accompanied by the constituency secretary and others.

By: Alice Abubakari/Ghanadistricts.com

Akufo-Addo administration must re-examine its priorities—Minority

Posted on by Kwaku GhanaMPs
The Minority in Parliament in its new year message has called on President Akufo-Addo’s administration to re-examine it priorities and desist from revising Ghana’s history in favor of familial considerations by bringing to an end the free for all corruption that has engulfed the current government.

In a statement issued by the Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu, he urged the current administration to cut down on the one hundred and eleven  Ministers immediately and present a new policies that would alleviate the hardship Ghanaians have been subjected to since the NPP took over power.

Mr. Haruna Iddrisu further indicated that the Minority is concerned about the worsening financial sector crises which has led to massive job losses, loss of investment and general lack of confidence.

“We implore Government to urgently confront reality and formulate concrete interventions to rescue Ghana’s troubled financial sector”, he lamented.

The Minority avails itself of the opportunity to assure Ghanaians to expect a more vigilant, thorough and battle ready team resolutely determined to pursue nothing but he national interest.

In addition, the Minority was thankful for the support and collaboration they received from all persons both home and abroad in performing their onerous constitutional duties of oversight lawmaking and safeguarding the country’s democracy, assessing the impact of executive policies on the people.

And further noted that the Minority remain encouraged and inspired by the overwhelming solidarity from the people they serve and allies such as the media, organised labour and civil society.

“We can deepen our engagements based on the principles nationalism, trust, mutual respect objectivity and fairness as we collectively work to demand social justice and accountability”.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Akufo-Addo administration must re-examine its priorities-Minority

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

The Minority in Parliament in its new year message has called on President Akufo-Addo’s administration to re-examine it priorities and desist from revising Ghana’s history in favor of familial considerations by bringing to an end the free for all corruption that has engulfed the current government.

In a statement issued by the Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu, he urged the current administration to cut down on the one hundred and eleven  Ministers immediately and present a new policies that would alleviate the hardship Ghanaians have been subjected to since the NPP took over power.

Mr. Haruna Iddrisu further indicated that the Minority is concerned about the worsening financial sector crises which has led to massive job losses, loss of investment and general lack of confidence.

“We implore Government to urgently confront reality and formulate concrete interventions to rescue Ghana’s troubled financial sector”, he lamented.

The Minority avails itself of the opportunity to assure Ghanaians to expect a more vigilant, thorough and battle ready team resolutely determined to pursue nothing but he national interest.

In addition, the Minority was thankful for the support and collaboration they received from all persons both home and abroad in performing their onerous constitutional duties of oversight lawmaking and safeguarding the country’s democracy, assessing the impact of executive policies on the people.

And further noted that the Minority remain encouraged and inspired by the overwhelming solidarity from the people they serve and allies such as the media, organised labour and civil society.

“We can deepen our engagements based on the principles nationalism, trust, mutual respect objectivity and fairness as we collectively work to demand social justice and accountability”.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority calls for reconstitution of Appointment Committee —Minority

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

The Minority are demanding to know when the Appointment Committee would be reconstituted in the wake of reshuffled made recently by the President Nana Akufo-Addo.

According to the Ranking member on Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said the Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has expressed concern about the way and manner appointees are vetted.

Again there are a number of members of the committee members of the Appointment Committee, who are now Ministers and it is not proper for them to be on the committee, he lamented.

“Ministers vetting their colleague Ministers in the wake of the next list of Ministers which vetting is very soon. I do not see that, slatted for next week and this could be an urgent matter to be taken”.

The Minority Chief Whip, Kwesi Amenyaw Cheremeh on his part noted that, the Business committee had already met and programmed its activities for the week, and pointed out that the point has been well made and leadership of the Business Committee would take a good note of it.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minority demands realistic farm gate price for cocoa farmers

Posted on by Fred GhanaMPs

The Minority is demanding a realistic price for cocoa as the 2019/2020 season begins next month, with farmers anxiously waiting on government to determine the producer price for the commodity.

According to the Ranking member on Agriculture, Food and Cocoa Affairs Committee, Erick Opoku the past three years of the Akufo-Addo led administration has famished and exposed cocoa farmers to extreme poverty.

“Most cocoa farmers have had to pawn their farms in order to survive under the current excruciating economic condition in the country, and to arrive at realistic price, successive governments have considered some critical factors like cost of living, FOB price of cocoa and premium receipts for the delivery of the best quality cocoa in the world”.

In a statement, he further pointed out that there is high operational cost and exchange rate going high, and gave an example that in 2016, a bag of cocoa was purchased at Ghc475 and a bag of cement was sold at Ghc22 in the Western Region.

The cocoa farmer with a bag of cocoa during former President John Mahama’s era could buy 22 bags of cement, under President Nana Addo’s government, the same farmer with the same bag of cocoa can buy only 13 bags indicating a loss of 9 bags of cement, he stated.

The FOB price of $2300 secured for the 2019/20 crop year is higher than the2018/19 price of $2200, and even the argument that the world market price has declined making an upward review of farm gate price impossible has lost its potency in the face of galloping exchange rate.

“To demonstrate this point, we wish to compare cocoa inflows in 2016/17 and 2019/20, we should be mindful of the fact that Ghana through forward sales has sold the 2019/20 produce though we are yet to harvest. 2016/17 FOB price+Premium $2950 (Per tone which is 16 bags).   At $1 to GHc 3.9 Value in GHs11, 505, 2019/20 FOB price-Premium   $2300 (Per tone which is 16 bags), at $ 1to GHc 5.3 Value in GHc 12,190. The above illustration clearly establishes the point that the NPP government is raking in more revenue from cocoa than we did”.

The statement also disclosed that had government added the premium receipts to FOB price of cocoa, the farm gate price of a bag of cocoa as at today would have been not less than GHc 800. We must not forget that President Rawlings exited office with a producer price of cocoa of GHc 20.17 per a bag of 64 kilos.

President John Agyekum Kuffor left the seat of government with a per bag price of ghc102 indicating that for the entire 8 years of President Kuffor, GHc 80.03 was added to the price.

Again, President John Atta Mills exited when the farm gate price was GHc 212 .This means that in 4 years president Mills added GHc 110 to the price of a bag of cocoa.

Former President Mahama left office with a per bag farm gate price of ghc475 indicating an increase of GHc263 over his 4 year period.

President Nana Addo Danquah Akuffo Addo has been in office for 3 years and our sources from COCOBOD states that the president will on 1st October 2019 announce a new farm gate price of GHc500.This would mean that President Akuffo Addo will add GHc25 to the price for the period of 3 years.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com