It'll scare investors, says Minority

Frontpage, Nov 19, 2010
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE Minority in Parliament has described the 2011 Budget and Economic Policy of the government presented to the House by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning yesterday as "wicked", "anti-private sector development" and "fear and panic" budget.
Even though the usual inscription on sheets of paper to convey their sentiments about budgets was absent, an interview with some members of the Minority showed their disapproval of the budget in general and the introduction of taxes in particular.
The Majority, however, debunked assertions by the Minority and explained that the budget would bring hope to Ghanaians after the government had used the past two years to repair the economic mess it inherited.
A former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and NPP MP for Old Tafo, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, said, "the budget is not a good one. There was nothing new with the exception of introduction of taxes".
He noted that with the introduction of seven different taxes, Ghanaians should expect more difficulties next year than what they experienced this year.
Dr Osei said anytime such taxes were introduced, "the government is causing fear and panic among investors and the general populace".
A former Deputy Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament (MP) for Wenchi, Professor Yaw Gyan-Baffour, bemoaned the insensitivity of the government, explaining that Ghanaians were already stressed up after going through a lot of difficulties under the NDC’s two-year misrule.
"Ghanaians are suffering and do not need more taxes. Why does the government want to increase the load on the already suffering Ghanaians?" he queried.
The NPP MP for Kwabre East, Mr Kofi Frimpong, stated that all projects that were mentioned in the budget were initiatives of the Kufuor administration and accused the Mills's government of running out of ideas after "promising Ghanaians the moon".
He explained that the budget could be described as anti-private sector because royalties that were paid by mining companies quarterly were now going to be paid monthly while the introduction of other taxes in the tourism sector would gradually kill the hotel business.
Mr Frimpong observed that it was the intention of the government to impose taxes on churches when Dr Duffuor mentioned that the activities of certain non-governmental organisations would be taxed.
"Why are we trying to put more impediments in the way of the private sector when the government has touted its resolve to make the private sector the engine of growth. Why are we taking away the oil that will lubricate the engine of the private sector to stimulate the kind of growth that we envisage?" he questioned.
The NPP MP for Ayensuano, Mr Samuel Aye-Paye, said there was nothing impressive about the 2011 budget, reiterating the fact that there were no new policies.
He said if the NDC did not have anything new for Ghanaians, then it was unfortunate that Ghanaians gave the party the mandate to rule.
He argued that it would have been better if the NPP had been allowed to continue with the policies the party initiated rather than offering the NDC the chance to change the policies.
Mr Aye-Paye observed that the removal of vehicle income tax was just a mere propaganda since the imposition of the repressive road tolls was rather severely affecting the road transport business.
The NPP MP for Ahafo-Ano North, Mr Richard Akuoko Adiyia, said the government could not boast of stability and growth while interest rates were still high.
He said it was only when interest rates were lowered that the private sector would be encouraged to borrow from the banks to expand their businesses and create jobs for the youth.
The NPP MP for Okaikoi North, Mrs Elizabeth Sackey, said it was unfortunate that after two years in office, the government was still struggling to find its feet.
She said even though prices of gold and cocoa had gone up, such gains had not been used to embark on more projects to benefit the people.
Mrs Sackey stated that not much was being done in the education sector, explaining that the provision of few school uniforms alone was not sufficient when the school feeding programme was gradually collapsing.
The Minister of Transport and NDC MP for Effutu, Mr Mike Allen Hammah, however, maintained that the budget would bring more hope to Ghanaians, assuring them that the new initiatives would encourage the private sector to do more to increase employment.
He explained that the taxes that had been introduced were well thought-out and would not affect the ordinary people in the country.
He assured Ghanaians that as stated in the budget, the rail lines would be rehabilitated and modernised to ensure easy and affordable transportation in the country.
The NDC MP for Juabeso, Mr Sampson Ahi, commended the government for working tirelessly to clear the economic mess that was left behind by the NPP administration.
"Let us give the government a chance to continue to implement its sound economic policies, which have already yielded positive results," he said.
Mr Ahi called on Ghanaians to support the government since it had proved that it was up to the task entrusted to it by the good people of the country.
The Majority Chief Whip and NDC MP for Nkwanta South, Mr Geshon Gbediame, said there was no doubt that the NDC government had been able to put the economy on a right path.
He, however, advised that if the government was poised to use the agriculture sector to stimulate growth and provide jobs, then efforts should be made to create ready market for farm produce to encourage the youth to take to agriculture.
Mr Gbediame expressed the hope that the eastern corridor road would be rehabilitated as expressed in the budget statement to ensure easy access to regions in the northern sector of the country through the Volta Region.
The NDC MP for Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, Mr Cassiel Ato Forson, argued that now that the economy had been stabilised, the government would be able to implement policies outlined in the 2011 budget in order to create jobs.
He said policy initiatives such as the rehabilitation and modernisation of the railway sector would go a long way to create jobs rather than the unsustainable National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) that was created by the Kufuor administration.
The PNC MP for Sissala West, Mr Haruna Bayirga, noted that every government had good intentions for its people and called on the government to rigorously implement policies outlined in the budget to achieve results.
He called for massive improvement in the road sector, stressing that roads in his constituency were not good.