.... MP asks
Accra, Nov. 29, GNA - Mr. Abuga Pele, Member of Parliament for Chiana/Paga on Tuesday asked his fellow Members of Parliament (MPs) to do a self-assessment of themselves if there had not been material improvement in their lives since they entered Parliament.

"Am I alone wearing a suit," Mr Pele asked, in reaction to a statement from two members of ruling Majority New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Suame and Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning that his economic circumstance had improved and was therefore wearing a dinner jacket to Parliament when he had criticised the NPP government for poor handling of the economy.

This was during a debate on the floor of the House on the Government Financial Policy for 2007, presented to Parliament on November 16, 2006.

Both the Majority and Minority had traded praises and condemnations for any increase or decline in the economic performance in the country recent history of the country, on each other.

Mr. Pele had questioned if Ghana was truly on economic renaissance attributed slow growth rate of the economy under the NPP administration, to which Dr Akoto Osei on a point-of-order remarked that at least the economy had improved and Mr Pele was at least wearing a suit and was riding a four-wheel vehicle.

Mr. Pele regretted that it was unfortunate that Ghana had now become a receiver of foreign assistance to support her budget. He said there was no change in the economy despite its receipt of 1.8 billion dollars to support her budget over the last six years. The debate touched on the various sectors of the economy, including education, transportation, energy, telecommunication, wages and salaries and disparities between development in the Northern and Southern sectors of the country.

Mr. P.C. Appiah-Ofori, NPP-Asikuma/Odoben/Brakwa whose contribution was interrupted with a number of point-of-orders mostly from the Minority side said the budget could not be described as "Awam" (fake) since it has solid proposals for national economic and social development.

Dr. Benjamin Bewa-Nyong Kunbour, Ranking Member for Finance said the nation must continue to tap on its agricultural sector to attain the growth rate needed for the nation to achieve a middle-income status. Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo, NPP-Amenfi East said communities could come together to source funds to create mini-hydro dams for electricity generation and sell the excess to the Energy Commission.

He said as part of increasing revenue net for government, income tax certificates should be made a mandatory requirement from parents and guardians before their wards would be offered admission to schools and also a requirement before certificates to commence business are issued.

Mr. Aidoo also called for road-toll booths on the nation's highways, especially where the road network had been improved to collect tolls to enhance revenue generation, and described the budget as comprehensive.

Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, NDC-Tamale South said what was conspicuously lost in the budget statement was any indication for the amelioration of poverty, adding that he thought the Minister of Finance would have told Ghanaians how far government had gone with her poverty intervention programmes.
Mr Iddrisu, who observed that a bigger funding of the budget coming from foreign sources, also expressed worry about the abolition of the National Reconstruction Levy and wondered how the Venture Capital Fund would also be sustained.
He called for a forensic audit into the operations of the Ghana Telecom, adding that he also expected that the 2007 budget would have made room for the implementation of the government's white paper on education reforms expected to take off in 2007. Mrs Angela Baiden Amissah, NPP-Shama and Deputy Minister of Education, however answered, "We are prepared. The first year is a preparatory year."