Minority in Parliament has called for a drastic reduction in the size of government and responsible spending as a means of cutting down on needless government expenditure in the 2023 budget submitted to parliament for approval.
At a press conference on Monday, December 5, 2022, the minority argued that instead of cutting down on non-essential expenditure, the budget has seen an increase with additional spending of up to GHS 82 billion with many of the expenditure items entirely wasteful and needless.
It is the Minority Caucus’ view also that the government has mismanaged the Ghanaian economy leading to unsustainable debt levels, high inflation, disastrous depreciation of the cedi with high budget deficits and unprecedented credit rating downgrades and that at this stage, there is a need for major expenditure cuts to achieve fiscal consolidation.
They served notice that they cannot accept some outrageous allocations in an austerity period.
“We will not accept the outrageous GHC1.4billion allocation as contingency vote contained at page 209 of the 2023 Budget statement. We note that, this allocation is an additional GHC400million compared with last year’s allocation of GHC993million. This cannot be happening in a period of austerity” they noted.
The minority also pointed out a double standard by the government who placed a total freeze on employment into the public sector but recruiting more people into the office of Government Machinery at this difficult time.
“We are also opposed to an allocation of GHS10 million for what has been strangely described as Defense Advisory Services. We also strongly denounce plans to increase the staff strength at the Office of Government Machinery by a staggering 1,570 at Page 230 of the 2023 Budget. This will increase total staff strength at the OGM to 3,681. This is unconscionable at a time Government has announced a total freeze in public sector jobs” they lamented.
Minority insisted that should there not be a significant improvement in the attitude of the Majority side and sector Ministers who will turn up to lead the Budget process on their sectors, they will withdraw from the Budget approval process.
The 2023 Budget
On the Budget the Minority noted that, far from offering hope and assurance of a quick turn-around of the ailing economy, it is rather packed with measures that will exacerbate the suffering the ordinary Ghanaian is already enduring.
They further lamented that, the 2023 Budget also continues on the same spending trajectory that has led to our collective economic doom as a country.
By Derick Botsyoe || ghananewsonline.com.gh
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