Parliament breaks next
Friday for Christmas season
Accra, Dec. 8, GNA - Parliament would rise next
Friday for the Christmas break.
The House, as a
result, would extend its sittings, beginning
from Monday to enable it carry out the heavy
workload ahead.
An average of 12 motions a day would be moved
during the week to approve the budgets of
Ministries, government department and agencies
next week.
Mr. Felix Owusu-Adjapong, Minister of Parliament
Affairs, who presented the business statement
for the week, said the Appropriation, Domestic
Violence and Central Depository Bills would be
passed next Friday.
He told the House that business would be hectic
and urged members to attend sittings regularly
and participate actively in proceedings.
Later, Mr. Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Minister of
Tourism and Diaspora Relations, who was in the
House to answer questions, said: "The
expectations that the Ministry will identify the
tourist potentials of all the 138 districts is
not feasible, especially, faced with the meagre
budgetary allocations."
"It therefore, lies on the district assemblies
and stakeholders in each district to identify
tourism potentials in their districts and seek
technical assistance from the Ghana Tourist
Board to develop them into tourist attractions
and marketing."
The Minister was responding to a question from
Mr Herod Cobbina,(NDC-Sefwi-Akontombra) on plans
to develop the Bopa Fall, in the Western Region
into a tourist site.
Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey said what was being
referred to as waterfall were rapids on the Tano
River caused by a big rock.
He said investigations had shown that the
rushing sound of the river over the rocks was
quite loud.
"Therefore, though not a waterfall per se, it
has the potential to attract visitors."
He said the Tourism Ministry was pursuing a
policy of decentralization and community based
tourism development and it was up to the
communities to take up the challenge of
developing their tourist sites.
The Minister, in response to another question,
told the House that estate developers and
farmers were encroaching upon the Okor forest, a
historical site in the Dangme East district,
described as the ancestral home of the people of
Ada.
GNA
