Category: General

Ranking member on Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson has said the ruling government’s reckless borrowing had led the Ghanaian economy in a bad shape, when he took his turn to debate the 2019 budget on the floor of the House.

According to him, this has culminated in the situation where currently every Ghanaian now owes over GHS 5,700.

“Within 12 calendar months, this government has added to our public debts by GHS32 billion. Ghana’s public debt is GHS 122.2 billion. If you’re to calculate per capital, then it means that an average Ghanaian, ordinary Ghanaian at the time owes GHS 4, 334.53 million in 2016.

Mr Speaker, as at 2018, according to Ghana Statistical Service, Ghana’s population will be by end of year 29.4 million. Mr Speaker again, Ghana’s public debt has risen from 122.2 billion to GHS 170.8 billion. Mr Speaker it means that in today’s Ghana, every Ghanaian including the new born baby owes GHS 5,798.00. Mr. Speaker, this is unprecedented”, he added.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

A Nigeria Senator, a member of the Sub-regional Community Parliament, Foster Ogola has urged countries in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament to present country reports that are current and robust.

He single out Liberia for praise, for presenting a current report reflecting current development in that country.

“The missing sixteen billion Liberian dollars, is something that their government has come out to refute but it occurred this year, we heard about it the news and has been reported”.

Mr. Foster Ogola made this remarks when Liberia, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Senegal presented their country report on Monday 19th November, 2018.

Again we accept the reports presented by the other countries but they are mainly 2016/17, “what has happened to ten months of 2018, I believe the country report should be more robust and up today”

The purpose of this country report system is to ensure that we have a peer review mechanism and want to identify countries that are sinking into problem and see how ECOWAS can intervene, if the report are overdue two years behind it is difficult to get intervention from ECOWAs or the Parliament, he pointed out.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Leader of Liberian delegation to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Edwin Melvin Snowe Junior has appealed to members presenting country reports to focus more on the written text.

According to the leader of the Liberian delegation it is not right for presenters of country report to go outside the written text they are presenting by taking more hours.

He made particular reference to Senegal, when Abdoulaye Vilane was presenting his country report and took more than the stipulated twenty five minutes given by the fourth Deputy Speaker  Orlando Pereira Dias.

Most MPs started clapping in protest to signify to Abdoulaye Vilane to leave the stage, but he did not agree with them and went ahead with his country report until he was through with it.

Mr. Abdoulaye Vilane said, “you just want me to stop reading I have three issues I need to touch on, it is important for you to listen to me well we have to show our pride, I do not know why you are making such noise, is there a problem with my text?”

Fourth Deputy Speaker Orlando Pereira Dias had to appeal to MPs to allow the Senegal representative to conclude his presentation.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Members of Parliament (MPs), in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)   sought for more explanation as to what led to the removal of former chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Charlotte Osei and her two deputies.

This was when the Bawku Central legislator, Mahama Ayariga who is a member of the community legislature, presented Ghana’s country report and touched on the removal of the former EC chair.

“In the year under review, the electoral landscape witnessed a major shake-up in both structure and form of the National Electoral Commission. Upon a petition filed to the President of the Republic and subsequent activation and subject of the petition to a constitutional process, the chairperson of the EC, Ms Charlotte Osei was removed from office and a successor, Mrs. Jean Mensah, appointed. Two Deputy Chairpersons of the Electoral Commission were also removed from office and replaced”.

Mr. Mahama Ayariga explained to his colleagues that the removal of the former EC boss was not during the conduct of the general elections of Ghana, “it has to do with the administration of the commission itself”.

“People may disagree with some content of the petition and the judgment of the committee, but once the committee comes to that conclusion the President would have to act”, he pointed out.

Most MPs who express concern about the removal of the former EC of Ghana, indicated that with the sub region most countries regard Ghana as a role model when it comes to conduct of election and were worried about the development.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Member of Parliament (MP) for Adaklu Governs Kwame Agbodza has expressed his disappointment in the Speaker Aaron Michael Oquaye for failing to recognize him on the floor of the House when he stood up.

According to the Adaklu lawmaker, Speaker Oquaye is the, “worst Speaker ever”, in the history of Ghana’s democracy.

The MP was on his feet to draw attention of the Speaker to the number of MPs present in the chamber, in respect to a decision the House was going to take on the constitutional instrument 109 currently before the House.

He noted that the Speaker was about putting a question on the report of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee, presented by its chairman Mahama Ayariga on the creation of the new regions.

On his part, the Majority leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu indicated that the action of the Adaklu MP is unacceptable and should not be tolerated.

He further cautioned the Minority side to be quite as the camber place is not a “market place”, as he took the floor and there was heckling from the Minority side.

Why should a member say the Speaker is the “worst” today is not the first an MP has been ignored.
“Mr. Speaker when he got up, he spoke not into the microphone and I consider it “gibberish”, that is insulting, you call the speaker the “worst”.

“A person well trained in his house would not pour out such gibberish, the member did not continue otherwise we would have subjected him to the rules of this House. That is misbehavior. Mr. Speaker all of us have at times not been noticed by the Speaker even as Minority leader sometimes as Majority Leader; recently I got up, the Speaker did not recognize me should the heavens collapse and fall on us?

We have seen Speakers and seen Speakers in this House since the days of justice Annan we have seen those  of them who have been very tyrannical in this House, I believe we want to be respected we should measure ourselves and mind the language we use in this House”, he lamented.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison has lamented over the abuse of thirty-three percent of Ghanaian children sexually despite effort being made to promote the rights of children, by eliminating violence and abuse of children.

According to the Minister, the abuse include rape, molestation, touching of private parts, watching pornography, the use of inappropriate language, and dirty jokes.

She further pointed out that one out of every five girls in Ghana is married before their 18th birthday, whiles 14 percent of girls aged 15 to 19 years had begun having children and 29 percent of children under five years  do not have birth certificate.

The Minister made this revelation in a statement on the floor of the House, in the celebration of the United Nations day of the child which falls on every 20th of November.

“We want to build a world where every child is in school, safe from harm and can fulfill their potential; the celebration calls for people in the streets, on social media, in boardrooms and sporting activities across the country to commit to Go Blue with and for children in a way that amplifies children’s voices”.

In Ghana, we would like to celebrate World Children’s Day through the following ways: Promote World Children’s Day to as many Ghanaians as possible through key media and social media channels and live platforms, she disclosed.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament on Saturday 17th of November 2018, adopted the country reports of Gambia, Niger and Burkina Faso, with first Deputy Speaker Sulaimon Lasun Yussuff presiding.

Mr. Muhamed Magassy who presented the country report of Gambia highlighted on the political and security situation in his country, pointing out that the country continues to enjoy political and economic stability since the change of government in 2017.

Truth reconciliation and reparation commission were appointed and inaugurated to start work to foster social cohesion and recognize the suffering to restore dignity of thousands of victims who were affected directly or indirectly under former President Yaya Jammeh regime.

On political rights and civil liberty, he noted that the constitution guarantees freedom of expression, “over the years state-owned Gambia radio and television service (GRTS) have been monopolized, but with the coming in of the new administration private radio and television station had been licensed and operational”.

Also Gambia delegation to ECOWAS conducted a sanitation activities, a robust one at Gambia-Senegal border in Farafenni on Monday 30th April 2018 which brought together all stakeholders from both side of all the two sides. .

He concluded his report and said Gambia is ever committed to the ideals of the sub-regional bloc and shall never relent in its efforts for the integration process of the ECOWAS Community.

Sawani Karimou Presenting the country report on Niger, also touched on the security situation in his country and noted, since the collapse of the Libyan State, Niger a Sahelo-Saharan country is confronted with threats from various pockets of insecurity at its borders.

On free movement of persons and goods he noted that his country has ratified the ECOWAS protocol; however like other countries in the community and efforts by successive governments, border crossing is seriously impeded and the community citizens are extorted.

Last to present its country report for the day was Burkina Faso done by Benao K. Reine Bertille who noted that her country had experienced slight upheaval because of the crises in the Independent National Electoral Commission.

All partied concerned are working together to find a solution, especially as the timetable for the election is almost out; the referendum on the constitution, legislative and Presidential elections.

Security situation in Burkina Faso is yet to improve despite targeted interventions by the defense and security forces, leading to more than four hundred schools being closed and the National Assembly had to meet over the matter in September this year.

“Mr. Speaker, a contingency plan was adopted to support the military, taking into account motivation intelligence and massive rapid exceptional recruitment of a contingent in 2018”.

Members of Parliament pledged to hand over one million (1,000,000) CFA francs to help the defense and security forces in their fight against terrorism.

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Former Minister of energy and Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembele, Emmanuel Kofi Armah Buah has predicted that Ghana is likely to go back to the “dumsor” era where there was consistent unstable power cut.

According to the former energy Minister there is no plan by the current New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration to add on to the power generating plan the previous government left.

He further added that as a nation we are not planning to address indebtedness of the power system.

“The National Democratic Congress (NDC) government addresses all these issues we got two thousand more megawatt on board and brought power solution, we have indigenous gas to address our energy sector problem”.

He challenged the media to check the current financial statues of GRICO and Volta River Authority (VRA); how are they doing? “I am worried if we are not careful we are going back to “dumsor”, it is very critical”, he lamented.

“Our energy sector levy is being used for pensions we are starving the utilities service providers and the debt keeps piling up, we had followed the plan of the previous administration we would have gotten close to our 2020 projection of universal policy on access to utility”.

Again we are not meeting our target of rural electrification, they are all stuck and we would be looking out for it in the budget, how government is addressing them.

He further pointed out that Saudi Arabia has announced a cut in crude oil and it means crude prices are going up, a gallon of petro fifty percent of that has tax element, we should be looking at this in the budget and it is the responsibility of government to be addressing this difficulties, he lamented.
By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

Former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mona Quatey has taken a swipe at the President Nana Akufo-Addo government for their claim that they are consolidating the economic gains made.

According to the former Deputy Finance Minister, the two years of the current government is eroding the gains made by the former President John Mahama’s administration and this need to be made clear to Ghanaians.

“We need to let the people of Ghana know what is going on this economy,  actually the economy  in a recession,  what is happening now and going to happen  is not going to be pleasant in terms of our cost of living cost of production”, she lamented.

She further emphasized that: “we going to see our economy go down let us make that clear to everyone, the gains being shown is the hard work that we the NDC has put in place.  If we are not careful it would all be eroded”. She made this remarks at a round-table discussion on Tuesday by the Minority in Parliament.

Mrs. Mona Quatey said she feels sad when she hears Information Minister Kojo Oppong say that, “President takes pride in the first few years of its government, we have achieved key economic success”, how so?

Before we left government we said, there is time to sow and a time to reap, therefore the NPP government is reaping what we had sown .

By: Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/ghanamps.com

The Akufo Addo led Government will provide the seed money for the construction of the controversial National Cathedral project, Finance Minister has told Parliament.

Presenting the 2019 Economic Policy and Budget statement for the financial year ending December, 32, 2019, Mr Ken Ofori Atta dropped the bombshell against Governments earlier claim that it will only play a facilitation role in the project.

“Mr. Speaker, on March 6, 2017 – the 60th year of our independence – the President cut the sod for the construction of a National Christian Cathedral for the country that will provide the space for national events of a religious nature.  A National monument, the Cathedral will house impressive chapels and baptistery, 5000-seat main auditorium, expandable to 15000 people for national events and celebrations.

“It will include among others, a grand central hall, a music school, and will house Africa’s first-ever Bible Museum and documentation centre. The National Cathedral project will also bequeath to the country a gracious national park for all Ghanaians; bring new skills, technology and jobs to the country; and will act as a beacon to national, regional and international tourists. Mr Speaker, the state is facilitating this process by providing the land, the Secretariat, and seed money for the preparatory phase”.

Many citizens of Ghana, Civil society organizations, the Trade Union Congress and individuals have all stated their opposition to move by government to use the tax-payers money for such a project saying it is not a priority.

Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com