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Duffuor has lost touch with macroeconomic
management---- forcing the poor to pay for
profligate Gov’t spending, hints AFAG
By Masahudu Ankiilu
Kunateh, Ghanadot
Accra. Dec 17, Ghanadot - The Alliance For
Accountable Governance (AFAG), a leading
pressure group in Ghana has expressed grave
displeasures over the macroeconomic
management tactics being put in place to
manage the country’s economy.
According to AFAG, the Minister of Finance
and Economic Planning, Dr. Kwaben Duffuor
has lost touch with macroeconomic management
of the country hence forcing the poor
Ghanaians to pay for profligate government
spending.
Addressing journalists at a press conference
in Accra, yesterday, a leading member of
AFAG, Mr. Sammy Awuku added that “the fact
is inescapable that the Minister of
Finance’s continuous presence in office is
more of harm to the people of Ghana than
good and in no uncertain terms his long
standing work with monetary policies has
made him lose touch with macroeconomic
management”.
He observed that the long standing working
of some gurus in the President’s economic
management team with World
Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF)
explained why the government focus was on
IMF stabilisation policies which largely has
huge conditionalities including; Independent
Petroleum regulatory authority, full
financial recovery plan for oil, gas &
electricity, a cut in public expenditure and
a freeze on public sector employment,
stressing that “We can only ask them to get
real and get home with the politics of
Ghana’s economic management”.
Mr. Awuku therefore appealed to the
President, H.E Professor John Evans Atta
Mills to extensively overhaul his Economic
Management Team and the Finance Minister to
bring economic relieve to Ghanaians.
The group emphasised that the government
must be willing to spend and not to take 5%
tax off crude oil and levy by far such
outrageous taxes on consumables, saying
“This is inconsistent with economic wisdom”.
The underpinning theme of this year’s budget
is “Growth and stability”, in effect;
however, one can foresee a “growth” in
hardship and “stability” in poverty and
hunger in the country, AFAG predicted.
Mr. Awuku flanked by his colleague stalwart
AFAG members was lamented that, whilst the
Government could not honour its promise of
free school uniforms for school kids, it
could spend Ghc 1.5 million( 15 billion old
Ghana cedis ) on US President Obama’s trip
to Ghana.
Also, at the time when the staff of the
National Youth Employment program have not
been paid for three months, the government
intends disbursing Ghc 5.6 million(56
billion old Ghana cedis) for Ministerial
bungalow renovation.
The Ghc 5.6 million(56 billion cedis) could
provide for 933 boreholes at the cost of 60
million cedis each for our rural dwellers.
The 56 billion is 12% higher than budgeted
expenditure on police accommodation across
the country, Mr. Awuku revealed.
“Today the NDC is comfortable and excited to
spend over over 1.2 billion to re-furbish
one ministerial bungalow when the seed
amount for the Savannah Development
Authority (SADA) is pruned down from Ghc 200
million to Ghc 25 million. The presidency
also has overshot its budget by 40 billion
Ghana cedis”, he indicated.
The AFAG questioned why must the poor tax
payer with an already eroded purchasing
power be made to pay for these “profligate”
Governmental spending through the imposition
of such huge taxes as per the {Fees and
Charges(miscellaneous provision) Bill} and
Customs and Excise(Duties and other
Taxes)Amendment No.2 Bill submitted 18th
November 2009 to parliament.
These included taxes on sugar, rice, maize
and canned tomatoes increased geometrically
by 500% respectively.
These enormous increases in fees and charges
by the government reduce the promise in the
party’s manifesto to review taxes to make
life easier for Ghanaians a mere rhetoric.
On the contrary what they have done would
increase Unemployment and leisure. The
effect of a high cost of production in the
private sector will trigger price increases,
limit the capacity of business to expand and
consequently; decrease in employment and
increase in lay-offs.
Financial intermediation will be weakened as
there will be high default rate by borrowers
and lenders will be unwilling to grant loan,
the consequences could be dire, the group
warned.
The irony however is that, this year has
seen rises in the international market price
of Ghana’s major exports: Gold and Cocoa.
Currently Gold is at an all time high and
for the first time above $1200 an ounce and
in London for the first time in 24 years
Cocoa future struck the highest level. Also,
Crude our major import averages less than
$75 on the world market.
“On this note, we are sounding a strong note
of caution to Government to abolish and
review downwards taxes as pledged in its
manifesto. Failure to do so, AFAG will have
no choice than to explore all democratic
means available to resist the harsh economic
conditions”, AFAG warned.
Ghanadot. |
