...As 2012 budget bids bye-bye to his political ambition

Source : Daily Democrat (Emmanuel Opare Djan)

Government’s commitment, as stated in the Budget Statement and
Economic Policy of the country for 2012, to address the country’s
infrastructure deficit as a catalyst for sustainable industrialization take off
has come as a big blow and shock to the political fortunes of the New Patriotic
Party’s (NPP).

Government prioritizing the need to find solution to the country’s
infrastructure deficit for the forward match of the country has also come as a
major hindrance to Nana Akufo-Addo’s presidential ambition.
Akufo-Addo, who perceives the presidency as a birthright and exhibited
his frustration through his ‘Yen akan fo and all-die de-die mantra’ is
heading for another political humiliation in the 2012 elections as majority of
Ghanaians are pleased with the leadership of president Mills to provide the
needed programmes and policies to improve their living standards.
The knock down effect of the 2012 budget in the camp of NPP is
confusion, disjointed focus, distortion and propaganda in the interpretation of
the 2012 economic policy.

Unable to adequately interpret and debate the Government’s 2012 economic
policy, the leadership of the NPP has adopted guerrilla warfare and a populist
posture to discredit the budget by referring to it severally as ‘enko yie’,
‘bye-bye budget,’ propaganda budget’ etc.

However, the excellent budget seems to be the retirement package for
Nana Addo’s presidential ambition and possibly his political career, since his
chances of winning any presidential primaries of the NPP has greatly
diminished with the allegations of drug and low moral ineptitude revelations in
the wikileaksexposé.

The Alan Kyeremanteng camp and discerning party delegates, for the sake
of protecting the party’s image would not renew his mandate to lead the part
with his battered image .

The goodies in the budget, on the other hand, will make Ghanaians vote
massively for President Mills and the NDC and say bye-bye to
Nana Akufo-Addo .

The opposition NPP has failed to recognise and appreciate the tremendous
performance by the Mills-led NDC administration to transform the tattered
economy they bequeathed to Ghanaians when leaving office in 2009.
Government has pursued with commitment, very solid socio-economic
policies that resulted in the restoration of fiscal consolidation and
macroeconomic stability and is on the brink of achieving the highest real GDP
growth rate ever recorded in the history of this country.

The macroeconomic stability achieved has provided the appropriate
platform for accelerated growth. The priority of government is to find a
solution to the infrastructure deficit that the New Patriotic Party (NPP)
failed to tackle which has hampered the country’ accelerated development over
the past decades

At the end of 2008, the fiscal deficit on cash basis which was 8.5
percent of GDP (14.5 percent of GDP-old cedes) has been significantly reduced
to 2.0 percent of the GDP at the end of September, 2011.

Inflation which stood at 18.1 at the end of 2008 is reduced to the
barest minimum of 8.40 by September 2011.

These visible achievements, good social intervention pro-poor policies,
commitment to address salary distortions and improve the
living standards of the country’s hard working workers through the
implementation of the single spine salary structure, massive support for the
education and health sectors for manpower development and better health care
could only be described as anything else by self centred politicians hungry for
power to amass wealth at the detriment of the general well-being of the people.
Discerning and development-focused Ghanaians, on the other hand, are
appreciative of the achievements chalked by the government since assuming
office in 2009.

The Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana
for the 2012 Financial Year presented to parliament has set the tone for
the rectification of the country’s infrastructure deficit to propel Ghana’s
agenda for an industrialization take off.

The budget will also continue to improve and stabilize the macroeconomic
achievements and guide against possible economic decline associated with
election years.

Presenting the budget on Wednesday, the third under President
Mills’ better Ghana agenda, the Minister for Finance and Economic
Planning, Dr Kwabena Duffuor said government will continue with
its prudent economic management policies to sustain
the social intervention programmes that have brought significant
improvement in the well-being of the people.
In pursuit of the NDC’s social democratic principles, the minister
reiterated government’s commitment to continue the implementation of a number
of pro-poor intervention programmes to provide equal opportunity for the
people.
Government, he said, has pursued with commitment solid socio-economic
policies that have resulted in the restoration of fiscal consolidation and
macroeconomic stability and have instituted measures to safeguard these
achievements to avoid possible decline mostly encountered during election
years.
Dr. Duffuor, who has had the singular honour of presenting three Budget
Statements and Economic Policies on behalf of President John Evans Atta Mills
since assuming the reigns of the country in 2009, expressed the government’s
appreciation to individuals and groups who have contributed to achieving the
better Ghana Agenda, especially the private sector, development partners,
Members of Parliament and the good people of Ghana.
According to him, the budget, under the theme Infrastructure Development
for Accelerated Growth and Job Creation is aimed at implementing policies and
programmes that will expand the infrastructure base of the country to create
jobs and provide the needed services for the benefit of all
Ghanaians.

He averred that the focus in 2012 will be on the provision of key
infrastructure in various sectors of the economy to further stimulate growth
and support the private sector to create more jobs and improve the incomes of
Ghanaians.

The key infrastructure areas to benefit under the 2012 budget will be
electricity, oil and gas, water and sanitation, railways, roads and ports as
well as health, education and agriculture.