Month: March 2024

So, all this while, the so-called maintenance of transformers put out by this unrepentant Akuffo-Addo/Bawumia government, as being the cause of the current Dumsor was nothing but a fabricated and concocted story to cover up for their incompetence and wickedness.

Finally the cat is out of the bag, as the Public Utilities Workers Union succinctly puts it that ECG has over 33,000 transformers. So that, even there is ongoing maintenance of 630 transformers, that cannot be the reason for the massive load shedding (Dumsor) being experienced across the country.

The truth is the Government is broke and cannot procure fuel/gas for our thermal plants leading to a shortfall in generation capacity. There is nothing prior, in or subsequent to this reason that ever explain away the reality.

This Cock and Bull story must give way to serious business. The government must be humble enough to admit the avoidable liquidity challenges in the energy sector.

Thank you PUWU of TUC for exhibiting courage and patriotism in speaking truth to power.

Ghanamps.com

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Effutu Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Makin has commissioned a six-unit classroom bloc at Winneba Senior High School in his constituency.

It was named after the former headmistress of the school Mrs. Comfort Oti-Akenteng.

In addition to this, he donated 300 classroom furniture and an ultramodern risograph machine to the school.
Meanwhile he has in addition donated four hundred (400) furniture to the National Vocational Technical Institute (NVTI) of Winneba.

Ghanamps.com

The Minority in Ghana’s Parliament has taken a swipe at the Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for the high tax regime in Ghana and pointed out that workers of the Ghana Revenue Authority should not be blamed as they are only preforming their statutory duties.

According to a statement sign by the Minority Leader Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson it is the Akufo-Addo/ Bawumia government that had imposed a lot of taxes on business and Ghanaians, so GRA should not be singled out.

“The government’s huge appetite for taxes has created a high tax regime which has made the country unattractive for doing business. It is therefore not surprising that many businesses in Ghana are relocating to other countries in the West African sub-region.”

They further added that, this spells doom and gloom for Ghanaian employees as jobs which would have otherwise been filled by them get exported as a consequence of the relocation of businesses from the country.

“Instead of blaming GRA workers, Alhaji Bawumia should take responsibility for the regressive and crippling taxes that his government has imposed on his watch as the Chairman of the government’s Economic Management Team. It is hypocritical and deceptive on the part of Alhaji Bawumia; the key architect of the government’s economic policies, to blame innocent GRA workers for the fallouts of a high tax regime after his government has sponsored, motivated and marshaled the numbers of the Majority Caucus in Parliament to fight tooth and nail to pass regressive, punitive, draconian and insensitive taxes.”

Again, it is absurd that Alhaji Bawumia, who approves economic policies including tax proposals at meetings of the Economic Management Team as well as justifies them at Cabinet meetings, has turned round to blame workers of GRA for the country’s high tax regime.

It was precisely because of the adverse impact of these taxes on businesses and the people that the NDC Minority Caucus in Parliament resisted the draconian taxes and voted as a bloc against them.

Already, we have served notice that the NDC Minority Caucus will bring a Private Member’s Bill to remove e-levy, emission tax and betting tax, the Minority stated.

According to the Minority, the government has finally agreed with them to abolish these taxes; except that while Dr Bawumia wants that done in the future, the NDC Minority Caucus wants the removal of the taxes now, they emphasized.

Ghanamps.com

Dr. Clement Apaak, Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament has lauded the various pre-tertiary teacher unions for giving listening ears to the National Labour Commission (NLC) reading their strike.

According to him, it is a good signal that the Teacher Unions have agreed to convey the outcome of their dialogue with the Ministry of Education to their members, adding that this gives a ray of hope that we could be seeing a resolution of the reasons that precipitated their strike action.

The Deputy Ranking Member speaking on TV3’s New Day program on Wednesday opined that teachers by nature would have to be pushed beyond what they can tolerate to decide to lay down their tools, “and so when teachers decide to take the kind of action that the teacher unions in the pre-tertiary educational sector took, it was because they didn’t find avenues and they didn’t get the needed audience as they said in terms of the employer engaging with them and giving them serious assurances in terms of addressing their grievances”.

Three pre-tertiary teacher unions, including the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers, Ghana (CCT-GH) laid down their tools indefinitely on March 20th demanding from the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service (GES) better condition of service.

They demanded among other things:
1) that the Ministry and for that matter the Ghana Education Service release the laptops for which 30 percent of the cost have been deducted from their salary be given to about a 100 thousand of their colleagues who are yet to receive theirs.

2) again issues about a lack of a service scheme interns of a document that will lay out the rules and regulations or guidelines about their movements within the parameters, in terms of moving from one level to another , how appointments are made and what to expect.

These relieves the deputy Ranking Member said are legitimate, adding that he is even ashamed that his committee (Educational Committee) has not been forceful in holding duty bearers accountable as far as the Educational sector is concerned.

Meanwhile, the National Labour Commission (NLC) has directed the Teacher Unions to return to the classroom and subject themselves to the negotiation table with the relevant institutions.

Ghanamps.com

Leader of Government Business in Ghana’s Parliament, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin has taken a swipe at the Minority in Parliament in their attitude of ‘see no evil, say no evil’.

The Majority Leader was not happy that the Speaker of Parliament Rt. Hon Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin adjourned the House sine die without giving leadership of both sides the opportunity to speak after he raised a disagreement on a letter emanating from the presidency on the Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill passed by the House which seeks to prevent the Clerk of Parliament from submitting the Bill to the President for his assent until the determination of a case at the Supreme Case.

According to him the conduct of the Minority leaves a lot of questions not answered as to whether they were aware of the action the Speaker was going to take on the floor of the House on Wednesday, March 20, 2024.

“Again, is it the case that, they are in support of this action to disrupt government business? They should remember that the people of Ghana are watching, we have ministers who are supposed to manage ministries and conduct public business for the benefit of the people of Ghana; what the Minority has done today shows they are not on the side of democracy”

Addressing members of the Parliamentary Press Corps on Wednesday, March 20, 2024 just after adjournment, he pointed out that the Minority want government business to come to a halt through their conduct. “They were not even ready to get us to engage Mr. Speaker but they were ready to pack and move into their cars and go home. Obviously, it is a political journey they are on; they want to explore the situation to their advantage. We believe that the good people of Ghana would know that we as NPP in government stand for the betterment, progress and development in government”.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

The Member of Parliament for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu has accused the Office of the President of hindering the work of Parliament.

This follows an official letter to Parliament, requesting the House to refrain from transmitting the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, commonly referred to as the Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill, to President Akufo-Addo for his assent.

Addressing members of the Parliamentary Press Corps (PPC) on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, Mr. Iddrisu stressed that the letter, which seeks to prevent Parliament from performing its duties, reflects President Akufo-Addo’s “quest for predominance” over other organs of state including the legislature.

“That is unacceptable and must be fought by all persons who love democracy and cherish the principles and values of the 1992 Constitution. This is a monumental threat to Ghana’s democracy and a monumental threat to Parliament as an institution. By Article 93 we are clothed with legislative authority and mandate,” he said.

The former Minority Leader also called for the letter signed by the Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, to be disregarded for failing to follow Parliament’s standing orders.

“Politically, what power does the President’s secretary have writing to the Clerk of Parliament and not the President himself writing directly to the Speaker as is required of our Standing Orders, so that officially it can be read as communication from the President?” Mr Iddrisu asked.

So ideally this paper means nothing and should be ignored by the Clerk because the President must sign communication to Parliament addressed to the Speaker, he noted.

On Monday, March 18, a letter addressed to Parliament and signed by the Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, had requested Parliament to refrain from sending the anti-gay bill to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for his assent.

The decision, according to Nana Bediatuo Asante, stems from the acknowledgment of two pending applications for an order of interlocutory injunction before the Supreme Court.

The letter emphasized that it would be improper for Parliament to proceed with transmitting the Bill to President Akufo-Addo for any action until the matters before the court are addressed.

Furthermore, it was disclosed that the Attorney-General has advised the President against taking any action regarding the Bill until the issues raised in the legal suits are resolved by the Supreme Court.

However, the Tamale South MP insists that an attempt to seek an injunction to prevent the passing of the bill is not the same thing as an injunction granted.

“But more importantly, Parliament cannot be injuncted not to perform its lawful function as the legislature of Ghana,” he explained.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com