Debates of 12 Jul 2006

MR. SPEAKER
PRAYERS 10 a.m.
CORRECTION OF VOTES 10 a.m.
AND PROCEEDINGS AND 10 a.m.
THE OFFICIAL REPORT 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Order! Order! Correction of Votes and Proceedings for Tuesday, 11th July, 2006. Page 1…6 --
Mr. John Gyetuah 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, at page 6, concerning hon. Members who were absent, hon. Samuel Johnfiah of the Committee of Water Resources, Works and Housing went on a working visit to Sunyani, with most of the Committee members whose names are listed over here. I believe the necessary rectification would be made.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
All right, thank you very much for that. Pages … 13 --
Alhaji Sumani Abukari 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, my observation is of a general nature. Mr. Speaker, I think that Clerks of Committees would have to be instructed to inform the printers of the Votes and Proceedings that their membership are out of Parliament or out of town on committee duties.
Mr. Speaker, the committees are your committees and whatever duties they perform out of Accra are parliamentary duties. So it is disheartening to note that on many occasions they are listed as being absent like it is stated here. So I think that
the Clerks would take note.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
Thank you for your observation.
We now move on to Item 3 - Questions. Minister for Energy, is he in the House? [Pause.] Right, we will take Statements.
STATEMENTS 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC - Tamale South) 10:10 a.m.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to make a Statement on the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), a very important State institution and the need for critical reforms of GBC to respond to contemporary needs.
The GBC is the nation's broadcaster. The GBC was established in 1968 under NLCD 226 to among other things:
a) Undertake sound, commercial and television broadcasts;
b) To prepare in the field of culture, education information and entertainment programmes reflecting national progress and aspirations;
c) To broadcast the programmes prepared in the main Ghanaian languages and in English and such other foreign languages as the corporation may determine; and
d) To carry on an external service of sound broadcasting.
GBC has a staff strength of about 1,500 spread over the ten regions of Ghana. The corporation operates twelve Frequency Modulation (FM) stations and one television station across the country.
The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation is not only facing management and financial crisis, but an identity crisis. May I pose a rhetoric question? Is the GBC a State broadcaster, a public broadcaster or a commercial broadcaster? The status and character of the GBC compared to the British Broadcasting (BBC), the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) remains undefined. Its status is not well established, even though the law establishing it intended that GBC should be a State broadcaster. Today, GBC is facing an identity crisis of a sort. It is not a State broadcaster, neither is it a public broadcaster nor a commercial broadcaster. The corporation was authorised to offer commercial service in the form of advertisement.
The GBC is duty bound to provide an independent and impartial service in sound and television for general reception in Ghana.
Mr. Speaker, I f ind the heavy dependence of GBC on the Government for its existence quite discomforting. The Government provides subventions for the employment of the workforce and some operations. The corporation generates some resources through advertisement for the production of programmes and provision of some equipment.
As honourable Members know, access to information leads to greater public transparency and accountability as well as good governance. We need and must as a nation situate the GBC to contribute to this process.
It is imperative that State or Government
controlled broadcasters are transformed into public service broadcasters like the BBC and made accountable to the public through Parliament. To achieve this, Mr. Speaker, the editorial independence of public broadcasters should be guaranteed; public broadcasters should be adequately funded and their transmission system must cover the whole country.
Their public service role should be clearly defined and include an obligation to ensure that the public receive adequate, politically balanced information. We need to insulate the BBC from political and commercial influences. This we can achieve through reforms that assures GBC of adequate and sustainable source of funding maybe by improving the licensing regime for the GBC.
Considering the role of the media and other means of communication in ensuring full respect for freedom of expression in promoting the free flow of information and ideas and in assisting people to make informed decisions and in facilitating and strengthening democracy, I wish to propose the establishment of a Presidential Commission to look into the future of the GBC; and make appropriate recommendations to reform it from a State broadcaster to a public broadcaster to meet the challenges of contemporary broadcasting.
Mr. Speaker, thank you for the opportunity.
Minister for Public Sector Reforms (Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom) 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to associate myself with some of the sentiments expressed by my Colleague the hon. Member. I do acknowledge and also wish to express the need for the restructuring of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). But then, Mr. Speaker, we must understand what we ourselves here in Parliament have done recently.
Recently, Members of Parliament
Mr. Joseph Yieleh Chireh (NDC - Wa West) 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the very important Statement on the state of GBC and to say that really, GBC has an identity crisis. The reforms that are needed will come from public debate as we are doing here and for us to make suggestions. To the contribution made by the Minister for Public Sector Reforms, he referred to a law that has been passed here but that law did not talk about GBC; it just talked about subvented organizations. But GBC is of a particular interest to us.
rose
Mr. Speaker 10:10 a.m.
Minister for Public Sector Reforms, do you have a point of order?
Dr. Nduom 10:10 a.m.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member is misleading the House. He should go back and read the Act. GBC is a subvented agency and therefore it is covered by this Act. If he does not know, he should ask. GBC is a subvented agency and therefore the law covers it. We passed this law, Mr. Speaker, it is important. A
sub-committee went through it with all the details. It was brought to this House and so I would expect that Members of Parliament would know what we passed not a year ago -- not two years ago, not four years ago but this year. So Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member should not mislead this House.
Mr. Chireh 10:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in fact, the hon. Minister has amply misled this House by making specific reference to GBC. I am saying that we are talking about GBC and its reforms and we can only take suggestions from debates like this to help him as Minister to reform this subvented organization, rather than for us to say that because there is a law, we should not talk about how we should reform the same institution. That is not the argument. I know very well that GBC is a subvented organization but that is the status in which we have the crisis.
What is it? Should it be subvented fully by Government and then it is State-owned or is it going to be public- funded and therefore can do independent broad-casting or are we talking about a commercial entity which they are attempting to be? So when there is a crisis like this, you do not throw the axe in the face of National Democratic Congress (NDC) and say there is no debate, there is no need for that.
That should not be the case. We can only suggest -- and indeed, I want to say that if he does not want me to make a contribution, the Statement, fine, but I have the right as the people's representative to do so. I do not think that it is fair that when we make a Statement - [Interruptions.] How can that be, it is not fair?
Dr. Nduom 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member should take his time. I have not
said that we should not engage in a debate or have a discussion on the matter. That is not the point.
All I am saying in reaction to what the hon. Member for Tamale South (Mr. Haruna Iddrisu) said, which was a good Statement, and just correcting the point that he made, that instead of a presidential commission, we should go back to the Act that we passed ourselves and which gives us the process that we need to go through. That is all. We can debate it. We would be happy to get suggestions and we welcome them as a matter of fact.
So the hon. Member should take his time and make his point because it is a necessary point and it is an important element in the State apparatus, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). So let us talk about it in a calm and proper manner. But I did not say that we should not engage in a debate. Mr. Speaker, that is not the point.
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member for Wa West, have you finished with your contribution?
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wanted to conclude - [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Please, go ahead.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wanted to conclude. But what I want to say is that when an hon. Member is contributing on the floor of the House, other hon. Members should at least listen. But for him to say that I do not know what a subvented organization is, is an insult. What I am saying is that it is not fair and I am saying that - [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member, go to other matters, please.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, and in any case, he introduced the debate to this comment. And it is not fair that he introduces a debate to the comment. The hon. Member made a Statement and he should listen to it and allow other hon. Members to contribute. Maybe, as the hon. Minister for Public Sector Reforms, he should have been the last to make a comment and acknowledge all the contributions that we have made - [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member, you may not have much time on your side.
Mr. Chireh 10:20 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. S. K. B. Manu (NPP -- Ahafo Ano South) 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the GBC we all know performs a very significant role in our nation. They give us information, entertain us and do a whole lot of things. As we are deliberating on issues here, it is the GBC, which will broadcast proceedings to the entire country and the world at large. I know TV3 does it but unfortunately, they do not cover the whole country. So the GBC carries our activities to the whole country and the world.
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Order! Order!
Mr. Manu 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, we all know that the GBC needs money. It is the public, whom the GBC is serving who should fund the GBC. The GBC has come out with a paltry sum of three thousand cedis as television licence fee. Mr. Speaker, but let me ask how many of us sitting here can show our receipts - [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Order! Order!
Mr. Manu 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, how many of us sitting here can show receipts of having paid the GBC television licence - [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Order! Hon. Members, order!
Mr. Manu 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, meanwhile people go and - [Interruption.]
rose
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member for Chiana/Paga, do you have a point of order?
Mr. Pele 10:20 a.m.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr.
Speaker, I think the hon. Member for Ahafo Ano South will have to show a good example. Can he show his television licence receipt right now for the House to see?
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member, you have no point of order.
Mr. Manu 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, this is one hon. Member - [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 10:20 a.m.
Hon. Member, continue.
Mr. Manu 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I will commend the Ghana Television (GTV) to check him up tomorrow and find his television licence - [Laughter.] He is in Block A, Sakumono Estates. They should come there and find him out - [Laughter.]
Mr. Speaker, my argument was not whether I have paid or I have not paid. What I was saying is that Ghanaians as a whole are failing GTV. We have not been paying the television fees, yet we go to DSTV and other networks and pay bigger sums there. And when GTV does not have money, we come here and talk
about it. Who should fund GTV? Let us pay our television licences and GTV will have money.
I thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Minority Leader (Mr. A. S. K. Bagbin) 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, this is a very opportune occasion for us as a House to assist the Government in taking a clear position as to how to handle GBC.
Mr. Speaker, we all know that in the pre-independence days, journalism in Ghana, particularly led by the GBC was to serve the useful purpose of fighting for our liberation.
Again, during the authoritarian regimes, the GBC together with other journalists fought hard to get us liberated from the clutches of dictators and move us to achieving democracy. We are now in a democratic dispensation. The challenge to us as a country is, how we can move some of these institutions, including GBC from the clutches of this dictatorial colonial past.
Mr. Speaker, it is actually not clear whether GBC is a state institution, whether GBC is a government institution, whether GBC is a private institution. There is a struggle for control and we have had in this country, very subtle forces that are released daily, especially by politicians and the free market economy in their attempt to take hold of the GBC. And Mr. Speaker, that is why I said it is an opportune occasion for us in this House to assist in policy formulation to make sure that we redirect our efforts as to what and how we want the GBC to be. I believe strongly that we still need State institutions. I believe strongly that we still need the GBC to be a State institution. By saying a State institution, I do not mean under government control. I mean, an institution that can chart the national course and be seen to be non-partisan and
non-political but at least nationalistic and patriotic.
Mr. Speaker, the GBC is in crisis now and it is not just crisis of finance, we also have leadership crisis. And we are aware of the dissatisfaction of the staff of the GBC, not just because of the conditions of service but because they cannot see the direction in which that institution is moving.
Mr. Speaker, I would strongly urge that Government should take a critical look at the GBC, should stop the downward trend of the GBC and make sure that the GBC is repositioned as a State institution. I believe strongly that the current leadership crisis in the GBC can easily be handled. It is not comfortable reading that the former Director-General says she is about to go and take her position and then the next day you are reading that some staff of the GBC are saying: “over their dead bodies”. And all that internal bickering is unhealthy because the GBC is seen as a lead organization when we talk about the profession of journalism.
Mr. Speaker, once again, let me reiterate that it is important that the Government takes a critical look at the GBC, and take the lead for this country to solidify the position that I am urging on, that the GBC be seen as a state institution. We would want the GBC to be more professional than it is. We want the GBC to be more objective. We have not had the analysis of looking at who is now more covered than whom in the political arena. Whether the GBC is covering more of government, more of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), more of National Democratic Congress (NDC) or more of the Minority Leader or whatever, we will need to do these studies and make sure that the journalists all over, especially in the State institutions are aware that they are to serve the national
interest and not parochial interests.
Mr. Speaker, I commend the hon. Member who made the Statement and again call on this House to, at least make an input, even if it is in the form of us empowering our Committee on Communications and Information to sit together and make a write-up to the Government trying to direct which area we should adopt as a policy to support the growth and stability of the GBC.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for this opportunity.

Capt. Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (retd) (NPP - Berekum): I thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to contribute to this very important Statement.

Mr. Speaker, I listened very well when my hon. Friend from Tamale Central was making the Statement.

Mr. Speaker, it is a fact nobody would quarrel with, that the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) is one of the most important institutions of our nation, Ghana.

One of the reasons is primarily because it has branches all over the country. From Bawku down to Half-Assini, from Keta right down to Hamile, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation covers the entire spectrum of our dear nation, and anything that we do through radio and television, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation carries the news to our people.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, my hon. Friend who is one of the flagbearers for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) is misleading this House -- [Laughter.] Mr. Speaker,
Mr. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, the hon. Deputy Minority Whip has made a statement to the effect that my hon. Colleague who is on the floor making his contribution is one of the flagbearers of the NPP, whether aspiring flagbearer or whatever. Mr. Speaker, as far as the NPP is concerned, the time is not yet due; there are no flagbearers yet, and there are no aspirants yet. If there are any aspirants there are not known to the Party - [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker, I know my Colleague hon. E. T. Mensah is angling to become the Vice-President of the National Democratic Congress (NDC). [Laughter.] But I would not disclose the information yet because it is unofficial - [Interruptions.] So Mr. Speaker, he was misleading this House when he put it on record that hon. Capt. Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (retd) is one of the aspiring flagbearers. Mr. Speaker, that fact is not known to my Party, the New Patriotic Party. He is misleading
this House.
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Hon. Majority Chief Whip, you have no point of order, let him continue -- [Interruptions.]
Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Mr. Speaker, I do not want flagbearership to disturb the flow of my contribution to the Statement. Mr. Speaker, I am making a point that when you go to the GBC and you see the number of offices they have and the buildings that house the Corporation and you compare it with the private press, one gets very disturbed. They have a staff strength of 1,500 and Mr. Speaker, you take a very simple private radio station with a staff strength of not more than 20 and yet they bring out a lot of production.
Mr. Speaker, I would agree with the maker of the Statement that there is the need for reforms but at the same time, Mr. Speaker, it is important to stress the fact that GBC has come very far. They have come very far because I do remember the days of 1992 when the NPP flagbearer at the time, the late Professor Albert Adu- Boahen went to GBC and wanted to go to the TV studios and he was prevented from entering Ghana Broadcasting House. At that time he was an acknowledged flagbearer, a presidential candidate but GBC pretended that they did know him. [Uproar.] Today, Mr. Speaker, GBC has come very far - [Interruption.]
Mr. C. S. Hodogbey 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. Member who is on the floor is deceiving the House. We are talking about the failure of an organization and he is bringing in a flagbearer who was not allowed - [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Order! Order! Hon. Members, let us have order.
Mr. Hodogbey 10:30 a.m.
I do not know
whether that has led to the failure of the Corporation. So he is deceiving the House.
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Hon. Member, please conclude.
Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Mr. Speaker, if what I am saying is not true as a factual statement, I am prepared to withdraw it. It is a fact -- [Interruptions.] In 1992 -- and I am saying that GBC today has come very far - [Interruption.]
Mr. Bagbin 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I think that on such situations, we would not want to inject too much partisanship because my good Friend is also aware that even during the last elections, the presidential candidate of NDC who was also the former Vice- President was refused entry [Interrup- tions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Hon. Members, Order! Order!
Mr. Bagbin 10:30 a.m.
It was the same GBC, so please he is advised not to tread into that area.
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Hon. Minority Leader, you have made your point but do not fall into the same problem. Please conclude.
Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Mr. Speaker, I am saying that GBC has come very far under the administration of the New Patriotic Party - [Hear! Hear!] Today, GBC gives fair coverage to all parties and to all candidates - [Interruption.]
Mr. E. T. Mensah 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member is still treading on dangerous grounds. [Interruptions.] His attention has just been drawn to the fact that only yesterday a former Vice-President and the flagbearer of NDC was prevented from entering Volta Star in Ho. So they have not gone any far. Look at the coverage of -- [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Order! Order! Hon. Member, we are not debating, please.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 10:30 a.m.
Thank you sir. Mr. Speaker, so I am only drawing attention to the fact that his statement is irrelevant, his contribution is irrelevant to the Statement. [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Order! Order! This is a Statement and we are only commenting on it. No debate, please. Hon. Member, please conclude.

Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Mr. Speaker, it is on record that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Administration has bought equipment worth €17 million for the development of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). [Hear! Hear!] Mr. Speaker, it is true, we have come very far and I am saying that GBC has the mandate -- [Interruption.]
Mr. Lee Ocran 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, Statements are not to be commented on the way he is doing, at all. It was not the NPP that put its hands in its pocket and took €17 million for the purpose. This House approved a loan of €17 million for GBC. Why? [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Order! Order!
Mr. Ocran 10:40 a.m.
It does not matter; it was this House that approved a loan of €17 million, so he should stop talking like that. [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Order! Hon. Member
for Berekum, please conclude.
Capt. Effah-Dartey (retd): Mr.
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Order! Statement by
Minister for Public Sector Reforms.
Compact Negotiated Between the Millennium Challenge Corporation
and the Government of Ghana
Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom (Minister for Public Sector Reforms) 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, on Friday, July 7, the Board of Directors of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) gave their written assent to the Compact negotiated by the Ghana MCA Project Team and MCC's Project Team in June 2006.
Mr. Speaker, the Compact is now
with the United States Congress and we feel that it is appropriate that this House, this Parliament is also presented with the contents of the negotiated Compact.
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Order!
Minority Leader (Mr. A. S. K.
Bagbin): Mr. Speaker, the proper thing is for him to lay it. That is what is done here. He should lay it and then it becomes the property of the House.
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
All right.
Majority Leader (Mr. F. K. Owusu-
Adjapong): Mr. Speaker, I believe what the hon. Minister is saying is that he is making a Statement and therefore his Statement will be available in the Official Report. But if anybody wants further and better particulars, he is giving a copy of this to our Library and he is not laying it as a document to be debated on the floor of the House. It is a Statement and therefore there is no need for him to lay anything if he is not ready to do that.
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Hon. Majority Leader, let him make the Statement but not refer to this. If he wants to refer to this, then he must lay it. Go ahead and make your Statement.
Dr. Nduom 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to begin by commending the efforts of the Ghanaian professionals, about 30 of them who have worked very hard to design the Programme and negotiate its acceptance working in collaboration with their counterparts at the MCC. The Ghanaian team included representatives from the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Transportation, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the Office of the President and consultants from the private sector. They have done very well for their country.
As the leader of Ghana's MCA Special Task Force, it is important for me to say clearly that the credibility of H.E. President John Agyekum Kufuor and his administration made it possible for Ghana to overcome many hurdles that we encountered during the course of the application process. The personal attention paid by President Kufuor has encouraged
those of us privileged to be a part of the project team to make the extra effort to make the compact possible.
Mr. Speaker, unlike other traditional development assistance programmes where the donor proposes how funds are used, countries selected under the Millennium Challenge Account propose programmes to receive funding. Thus the MCA is designed to allow developing countries to take ownership and responsibility for funds provided by the Millennium Challenge Corporation.
I wish to confirm to the hon. Members of the House that our Ghanaian professionals have designed a Programme that belongs to us and one that we Ghanaians can implement successfully.
Mr. Speaker, the MCA is one pro- gramme that a country cannot go to the Americans and ask to become part of. You must be invited to participate in it through a rigorous qualification process. All Ghanaians can take pride in the fact that our country was one of the 16 countries in the world initially selected to participate in the MCA programme. Ghana was selected on the basis of three fundamental principles:
1) Governing justly;
2) Investing in people; and
3) Encouraging economic freedom.
All of us have just cause to rejoice over the fact that Ghana is considered to have progress over the years in the areas of government and economic opportunity.
Consultation
The consultation process involved in the development of the Ghana MCA compact proposal took into account the key principles of ownership and
inclusiveness in a participatory democratic dispensation.
The MCA Ghana team undertook a series of consultations across the length and breadth of the country. More than thirty consultative meetings were held, with an average participation of about forty stakeholders. Various stakeholders took part in these consultations and these included: policy-makers, agricultural industry players, farmers, farmer-based organizations, exporters, industry associations, environmental groups and organizations, gender organizations, the media and other civil society organizations.
The objective of the consultative process was to select a priority pro- gramme which is country-owned, in line with government's broad development strategy; build synergies with existing programme; and promote accountability, transparency and sustainability in the delivery of outcomes.
The major recommendations arising from the consultation process are as follows:
MCA resources must be focused on a limited number of areas in order to achieve maximum impact;
Agriculture endorsed as the priority sector to complement already existing private sector-led government programmes;
Constraints need to be removed along the agribusiness value chain in a systematic and integrated manner;
Road infrastructure needs to be improved to spur investment; and Nationwide consultations was necessary for arriving at any major policy or resource allocation decision to ensure inclusiveness and country ownership.
The Goal and Project Level Objectives of the Compact
Mr. Speaker, the goal of the Compact is poverty reduction through economic growth. The Programme aims to increase
Dr. Nduom 10:50 a.m.
the production and productivity of high- value cash and food staple crops and enhance the competitiveness of Ghana's high --value cash and food crops in both local and international markets. The three project-level objectives of the Compact are:
a) Enhance the profitability of c u l t i v a t i o n , s e r v i c e s t o agriculture and product handling in support of the expansion of commercial agriculture among groups of smallholder farmers (the “Agriculture Project”);
b) Reduce the transportation costs affecting agricultural commerce at subregional and regional levels (the “Transportation Project”); and
c) Strengthen the rural institutions that provide services comple- mentary to, and supportive of, agricultural and agri-business development ( the “Rural Development Project”).
Summary of the Agriculture Project and Related Project Activities
The Agriculture Project is designed to enhance the profitability of staple food and horticulture crops to improve delivery of business and technical services to support the expansion of commercial agriculture among farmer-based organizations (“FBOs”), which are groups of eligible farmers, input suppliers selling to these farmers, or output processors buying from the farmers. Funds from the Compact will support the following Project Activities:
Farmer and Enterprise Training in Commercial Agriculture: To accelerate the development of commercial skills and capacity among FBOs and their business
partners (including service providers to FBOs and other entities adding value to agricultural crops such as processors);
Irrigation Development: To establish a limited number of retention ponds and weirs request by the FBOs and FBO partnerships for whom access to water is critical to the success of their business objectives;
Land Tenure Facilitation: To improve tenure security for existing land users and to facilitate access to land for commercial crops in the Intervention Zones;
Improvement of Post-Harvest handling and Value Chain Services: To facilitate strategic investments by FBOs in post-harvest infrastructure improve-ments and to build the capacity of the public sector to introduce and monitor compliance with inter-national plant protection standards;
Improvement of Credit Services for On-Farm and Value Chain Investments: To augment the supply of, and access to, credit provided by financial institutions operating in the Intervention Zones; and Rehabilitation of Feeder Roads: To rehabilitate up to 950 km of feeder roads in the Intervention Zones in order to reduce transporation costs and time, to increase access to major domestic and international markets, and to facilitate transportation linkages from rural areas to social service networks (including, for instance, hospitals, clinics and schools).
Summary of Transportation Project and Related Projects Activities
The Transportation Project is designed to reduce the transportation costs affecting agricultural commerce at sub-regional and regional levels in Ghana, in support of the Agricultural Project. Funds from the Compact will support the following Project Activities:
Upgrades to Sections of N1 Highway: To reduce the bottleneck in accessing the International Airport and the Port of Tema and to support an expansion of Ghana's export-directed horticulture base beyond current production, by upgrading of 14 km of the National Highway (“NI Highway) between Tema and Accra (specifically, the stretch of N1 Highway from Tetteh Quarshie Interchange to Mallam Road Junction, also known as “TQM” and by constructing two grade separation interchanges at the Dimples-Achimota and Mallam Junctions to improve traffic management at these locations;
Improvements of Trunk Roads: To facilitate the growth of agriculture and access to social services by rehabilitating or constructing up to 230 km of trunk roads in the Afram Basin Zones; and Improvements of Lake Volta Ferry Services: To facilitate the growth of agriculture in the Afram Basin Zone by improving the ferry services of Volta Lake Transport Company (“VLTC”) that connect Adawso on the sourthern shore of Ekye Amanfrom on the northern shore.

Summary of Rural Development Project and Related Projects Activities

The Rural Development Project is

designed to support agricultural and agri-business development under the Agriculture Project and to strengthen the rural institutions that provide complementary services. MCC Funding will support the following Project Activities:

Strengthening of Public Sector Procurement Capacity: To support the development of procurement professionals and reinforce the capabilities of the Government to procure goods and services;

Support for Community Services: To complement the Agriculture Project by funding construction and rehabilitation of educational fac i l i t i es , cons t ruc t ion and rehabi l i ta t ion of water and sanitation facilities and electri- fication of the rural areas, and by providing capacity support to local government institutions; and

Strengthening of Rural Financial Services: To automate and interconnect the 121 rural banks and savings and loans institutions and to provide other improvements in the national payments systems that will draw a large number of people currently not served or under-served into the financial system.

Programme Management

Mr. Speaker, the Compact will be implemented through the management of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) which was created by an Act of Parliament (Act 702). MiDA has been created as an independent body to be responsible for the supervision, management and implementation of the Compact.

MiDA will have a Board of Directors, a Chief Executive who will report to the
Minority Leader (Mr. A. S. K. Bagbin) 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I want to start by thanking the Minister for Public Sector Reforms for coming to the House to inform us, in a more comprehensive manner, about the programme involving the Millennium Challenge Account and what they have done so far, which he referred to as a Compact.
Mr. Speaker, I would have preferred, even though I have commended him, that at the early stage of the formulation of the Compact this House would have been part of that whole process so that as the representative body of the people, we
would be a in a better position to input into what has gone into the Compact. Be that as it may, Mr. Speaker, it is now before us and that is why initially I urged that it should be laid, though other people thought otherwise.
Laying a document simply means that the document becomes the property of the House, formally. It does not necessarily mean that the House is going to debate what is laid. Mr. Speaker, we can recall that hon. J. H. Mensah, former Senior Minister, a former Leader of the House and former Minority Leader laid a writ - [Interruptions] - against the Attorney- General in this House. That was just for our information; it did not mean that we had to debate it. That is one thing. Mr. Speaker, I would have preferred that this document was laid before the House, not just a copy presented. That is the formal way of conducting business in this House.
Mr. Speaker, again, I want to assure my good Friend, the Minister for Public Sector Reforms that this country has always made use of the good materials that we have all tried as a country to produce.
It is not just now. I am surprised that he said the main achievement. The word is not ‘achievement'. He was giving the impression as if that is what we should be looking at, the fact that we have been able to use our own kin and kith to produce such a document.
Mr. Speaker, he is aware that he was one of those who even during the PNDC days was identified to come down to this country to support the financial management of our economy. So Mr. Speaker, it was being done, and I know that even after independence, the first President of this great nation made use of a lot of Ghanaians who were in the diaspora to try to hold onto the Public Service that was being left behind by our colonial masters. So Mr. Speaker, that has been the practice; that is the culture of this country, it is just not now.
Again, Mr. Speaker, I think that the document is a good document but the earlier comments on the document still stand, that it would have been preferable if it was all inclusive. And Mr. Speaker,
Minority Leader (Mr. A. S. K. Bagbin) 11 a.m.
P. 29
P. 29
Space (2)
when I say “all inclusive” I am talking about the fact that the Western Region, Brong Ahafo Region, and the two Upper Regions, East and West -- Four regions out of the ten regions in this country are left out of the Compact.

Mr. Speaker, I believe strongly that the position stated by the hon. Minister that it is not objection from only the Minority but it is objection from both the Minority and the Majority that this facility be extended to all the regions -- And therefore, I was really shocked when I saw the communication of the hon. Minister to other persons. He stated that the NDC are making this noise because we are afraid of the kind of impact that that money would make in the country and that we will not win elections in the nearest future. I was really shocked -- [Interruptions.] Look, I can give you evidence -
rose
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Minister for Public
Sector Reforms, do you have a point of order?
Dr. Nduom 11 a.m.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my hon. Friend, the Minority Leader, if I am the Minister he is referring to, definitely is misleading this House because I have not made the statement that he is referring to. I have not made any such statement. Mr. Speaker, when it comes to the Millennium Challenge Account, we have done what we need to do and we are communicating on it without partisanship; and so I would appreciate it if the hon. Minority Leader does not attribute to me or associate me with such partisan comments.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Minority Leader,
whatever it is, as you know, only comment.
Mr. Bagbin 11 a.m.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, we
are just making comments; we are not debating. I am just saying that he should be more careful in the communication that he does as a Minister because I can produce documents to support this. I have them and he has communicated to so many people on this matter. I said that I was shocked to read that, because this is a national programme. And one of the things that we have been missing as a country is the social capital.
No Government can succeed in this country with only a portion of the people. Whether they claim to be majority or so in Parliament we will need the critical mass of the people of this country to be able to implement programmes and projects effectively. So when we start on a partisan note, we divide, and when we divide, we lose a big chunk of the social capital which is meant for development. That is why I am drawing his attention to it.
Mr. Speaker, it is also not the case that
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11 a.m.
Mr.
Speaker, the hon. Minority Leader has attributed a statement to the hon. Minister. The hon. Minister has put in a disclaimer. He says he has not made the statement being attributed to him by the hon. Minority Leader. You advised the hon. Minority Leader to take note of it. Then beyond your advice, he went on to say that he has documents to indicate that he made
the statement.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Majority Chief Whip,
do not lose your temper at all.
Mr. Bagbin 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, at least, my
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Order! Order!
Mr. Bagbin 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I did not
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Minority Leader, the
Minister is saying that he never said anything like that. You might as well take that in and then proceed.
rose
Mr. Bagbin 11 a.m.
Exactly, that is why I was
proceeding. I was proceeding because, as I said, I did not want to push it further. But as for that one, my good Friend can come to me now in my office and I will give him a copy.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Minority Leader, I
thought you were going to take him in good faith and not belabour that matter again.
Mr. Bagbin 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the young
man is still on his feet -- [Laughter.] Mr. Speaker, let me just say in furtherance to what - [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Majority Chief Whip,
do you have a further point of order?
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11 a.m.
Mr.
Speaker, the issue I raised is the practice in this House. Regarding the matter being raised by the hon. Minority Leader that he is older than me and so on, I think that is neither here nor there. If we are talking about depth, I believe that the hon. Minority Leader, regarding the procedure in this House, he cannot claim that in spite of his age here -- [Interruption] - That is what I mean, if he understands the language - [Interruption] -- If he understands the language and the context of usage, hon. Sallas-Mensah should appreciate the language I am using.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Majority Chief Whip,
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11 a.m.
Mr.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Majority Chief Whip,
you have made a valid point, but to make progress I have been talking to him not to belabour the matter. Minority Leader, know that he has made a valid point on this. In fact, he has made a valid point.
Mr. Bagbin 11:10 a.m.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, I
take the cue from you. I want to state here and now that the programme that is to be pursued by the support from the Millennium Challenge Corporation initiated by H.E. the President of the United States of America is a very, very laudable programme. I think that if the monies are properly utilized they could seriously propel the GDP growth rate to a percentage that others have reached long ago. We could move as far as to between 10 per cent and 14 per cent GDP growth rate if we properly invest this money.

Mr. Speaker, with this statement, I want to draw the attention of the hon. Minister to the importance of monitoring and evaluation, especially analysis of the implementation of the programme. It is very important that after the first year of the implementation of the programme, a critical look is taken as to how far we have utilised the money.

Mr. Speaker, I want to end with this statement. The fact that hon. Members in this House critically analyse and criticise matters that are brought to this House does not mean that hon. Members are opposed to the matters that are brought to the House.

Mr. Speaker, I am saying this because

I have read a lot of material in which my good-self and some Members of this House, have been singled out for insults just because we have critically analysed some of the programmes, including the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) that has been brought to this House. I think it is unfortunate and we have to move away from that culture - the culture of thinking that anything should be praised.

I say so because some of us believe strongly that whatever cannot be criticised cannot be improved. You would need to criticise, whether it is government policy, or NGO policy and then they will be in a better position to improve upon that policy.

I believe strongly that some of my good friends, especially in the media who are inclined to always support government position should learn from the fact that there is no perfection in society and therefore there is the critical issue of a critical voice for us to move forward.

Just a few days ago, my friend on the Statesman really criticised and in fact ran some of us down as if we did not know what we are about in this House. I think that is not good journalism.

Mr. Speaker, let me end by saying this. The initial programme that was submitted by the hon. Minister talked about $500 million. Through the interventions of Government and other personalities, the amount has been moved to $547,009,-

000.00.

Mr. Speaker, may I on behalf of the

other four regions, put in a request that if nothing at all the $47.9 million be extended
Mr. Bagbin 11:10 a.m.


Mr. Speaker, I am saying this because
rose
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Minority Leader, you see
he is up? You may as well withdraw that because he is up.
Mr. Bagbin 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, he is my
good friend, and he had been to me -- [Interruptions.] Mr. Speaker, taking a cue from you, I withdraw that statement.
But it is important that, Mr. Speaker, we bring the other regions on board because as people of the same country, even if initially the thinking was that we would invest in some areas where we thought we could reap maximum benefit and then share to the other areas, it is important for us to look at it that we should all produce together and share together.
It should not be the case where some people would produce and distribute or share to others who are disadvantaged. I do not believe in that. I believe in the fact that we should all be given equal opportunities to strive to produce the best for the country.
It is with this that firstly, I commend the hon. Minister for coming to brief us. Secondly, I think it is important that this document be properly laid; and thirdly, we have to commend the Government and the country for shining in Africa and attracting a support that is not a grant, not a loan, but
an effort by the United States Government, led by their President, to try as much as possible to assist us to reduce the endemic poverty that we have in our country.
It is with this that I would want to commend the hon. Minister once again.
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Majority Leader, do you
have anything to say?
Mr. Owusu-Adjapong 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I
take it to be a straightforward Statement, which is not supposed to be subject to debate, and therefore we can make progress.
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Item 3 - Questions -
Minister for Energy.
Majority Leader, is the hon. Minister
for Energy in the House?
Mr. Owusu-Adjapong 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, you may recall that last week I said that the hon. Minister for Energy was going to be out of Accra for some time and so I crave your indulgence to allow the Deputy Minister to respond to the Questions.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS 11:10 a.m.
MINISTRY OF ENERGY 11:10 a.m.
Mr. E. P. Aidoo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to know from the hon. Minister when those additional substations would be constructed.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I cannot
be specific. It is a big project -- 300 km length of line. The Electricity Corporation of Ghana (ECG) has been told and currently they are evaluating the situation.
Mr. E. P. Aidoo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
I would like to find out from the hon. Minister whether the delay in the construction of such substations would not affect economic and social activities in the Sefwi-Wiawso, Juabeso Bia and Akontombra constituencies.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the
situation is not that bad; it is not that critical. Electricity has already been connected to the area but we appreciate that there are fluctuations. Mr. Speaker, it is not only in that part of the country; it is a situation which prevails in many parts of the country. But there is a peculiar problem
over there -- a three-hundred kilometre line. So the Ministry, in collaboration with ECG, is currently evaluating it. It would not affect economic life there. Various areas which need to have electricity have got adequate supplies of it.
Mr. E. P. Aidoo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in his Answer, the hon. Minister said that his Ministry requested ECG to study the transmission system. Mr. Speaker, would the hon. Minister tell this House what has come out from the ECG studies on transmission systems in the Sefwi area? [Interruptions.]
Mr. Speaker 11:20 a.m.
Order! Hon. Members,
let us have decorum. Would you be kind enough to repeat your question?
Mr. E. P. Aidoo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in the hon. Minister's Answer, he informed the House that his Ministry requested ECG to study the transmission system in those areas. Mr. Speaker, I am asking the hon. Minister to tell this House what has come out from that study.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the
study is not concluded. We have asked them to do it; they are currently doing it and so not much has come out of it because it is not concluded.
Solar Panels to Areas Without Electricity
Q. 433. Mr. Kwadwo Agyei-Addo asked the Minister for Energy when solar panels would be moved from areas which have been connected to the national electricity grid, to areas without electricity.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Energy has installed solar photo-voltaic (pv) systems in the Fanteakwa and Kwahu South Districts in the Eastern Region and the Krachi District in the Volta Region. Subsequently, some of the beneficiary communities have been
connected to the national electricity grid. It is therefore the policy of the Ministry of Energy to retrieve and relocate these PV systems in other communities in collaboration with the respective District Assemblies.
This exercise is being carried out in phases. The first phase involved the Krachi District where solar systems at Domabin, Kparepare and Adumadam have been retrieved and are currently kept with the District Assembly. The batteries, lamps and regulators and other accessories would however have to be replaced before relocating them to other locations within the District.
The exercise in the Fanteakwa and Kwahu South Districts which constitutes the second phase is scheduled for the 4th quarter of the year. This will involve the retrieval of solar systems at Dominase and Dedesu in the Fanteakwa District as well as Amanfrom and Amate in the Kwahu South District.
Our previous attempts to retrieve the solar systems in the Fanteakwa District were met with resistance by the beneficiary communities. The Ministry of Energy would therefore appeal to hon. Members of Parliament for Fanteakwa and Kwahu-South constituencies and their respective District Assemblies to support the Ministry of Energy's efforts in this endeavour.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in the
hon. Minister's Answer, he alluded to the fact that previous attempts to retrieve the solar systems were met with resistance. Would he tell us why he thinks there was that resistance, and the nature of the resistance?
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am not
able to tell the hon. Member the motive for the resistance because I am obviously not in the minds of those who did it. But
the nature of it simply was not to allow us to take the system away because they thought that it was an additional source of electricity and so they wanted the system in place.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I asked
this question because those communities, though linked to the national grid, do not yet have meters. So I want to ask the hon. Minister what efforts the Ministry is making to provide meters for those communities.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I
have not got any knowledge about these communities having applied for meters and not having been supplied. Mr. Speaker, the system is this, that we connect the communities to the national grid and it is then for the individuals to apply for registration of the meters. So to the extent that they have not applied and registered with the branch of the ECG we will not be able to supply them with the meters. So if the hon. Member could help in this direction, we will be happy to receive the list of those who have applied for registration, and we will then ensure that meters are supplied to them.
Ehiamenkyene and Bepoase (Electricity)
Q. 434. Mr. Kwadwo Agyei-Addo asked the Minister for Energy when Ehiamenkyene and Bepoase towns in the Fanteakwa constituency would be connected to the national electricity grid.
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the Ehiamenkyene and Bepoase communities in the Fanteakwa constituency are part of the electrification projects currently undertaken by the Ministry of Energy.
We have awarded the contract for the execution of the project. There have been delays on the project owing to the lack of

provision of the full complement of Low Voltage (LV) poles by the communities as required under SHEP policy.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, if the contract for the execution of the project has been awarded, as he has made us to understand, is he in a position to provide the name of the contractor so that I can do a follow-up?
Mr. Hammond 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the
Director of Power is in the building and we will give him the name of the contractor as soon as this Sitting is over.
Mr. Agyei-Addo 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for the assurance. I will take it up.
Electricity for Selected Communities in Gomoa West Constituency
Q. 435. Mr. Joe Kingsley Hackman asked the Minister for Energy when the electrification project going on in some selected communities in the Gomoa West constituency would be completed, and when the remaining communities such as Gomoa Mampong, Techiman, Okwahu, Achiase, Fomena, Akwakrom, Ajumako- Ansah, et cetera would also be connected to the national electricity grid.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, a number of communities are being connected to the national grid in the Gomoa District. These include projects at Gomoa Abasa and Gomoa Mpota which have been completed. Further, installation works have also been completed at Kyirem, Adam, Ngyresi, Manso No.1, Antsiadze, Odumase and Adaa. The outstanding works in these communities are testing of the network by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and customer service connections. The electrification projects in these communities will be fully completed during the course of the year.
Mampong and Achiase have just been awarded on contract. These communities are expected to be connected to the national grid during the course of the year.
Okwahu, Techiman and Fomena communities have been earmarked for connection to the national electricity grid under the SHEP-4 Project. These communities, however, do not form part of the ongoing SHEP-4, Phase-1 project, and would be connected to the national electricity grid in the subsequent phases of SHEP-4 subject to the availability of funding.
The Akwakrom, Ajumako-Ansah communities have not been listed under any of the ongoing projects carried out by the Ministry of Energy. They may however apply for consideration under the SHEP if they meet the eligibility criteria.

Electricity for Miminaso No. 2, Nyamebekyere, et cetera

Q. 436. Mr. B. A. Masoud (on behalf

of Alhaji Issifu P. Mohammed) asked the Minister for Energy when the following communities would be connected to the national electricity grid:

(i) Miminaso No. 2

(ii) Nyamebekyere

(iii) Bare-Nkwanta

(iv) Aframso

(v) Frante

(vi) Juaho

(vii) Drobeng; and

(viii) Bemi.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the Nyamebekyere, Frante, Drobeng and Bemi communities have been earmarked for connection to the national electricity grid under SHEP-4. These communities however do not form part of the ongoing SHEP-4, Phase-1 project, and would be connected to the national grid under the subsequent phases of the SHEP-4 subject to the availability of funding.
The remaining communities namely, Miminaso No. 2, Aframso, Juaho and Bare-Nkwanta have not been listed under any of our ongoing projects. They may however apply for consideration under the SHEP if they meet the eligibility criteria.
SHEP-4 in Ningo/Prampram Constituency (Commencement)
Q. 437. Mr. Enoch Teye Mensah asked the Minister for Energy when would the Self-Help Electrification Project (SHEP-4) in the Ningo Prampram constituency commence.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, fourteen (14) communities in the Dangbe West District, of which the Ningo Prampram constituency is part have been earmarked for connection to the national electricity grid under SHEP-4.
The communities include Abia, Abonya, Dormnya, Fiakonya, Kortorkor, Kpatcheado, Kponkpor near Nyigbenya, Lakpleku, Mamgotsonaa, Odumse, Lardowayo, Otsebleku, Some and Sota.
These communities however do not form part of the ongoing SHEP-4, Phase-1 project, and would be connected to the national grid under subsequent phases of SHEP-4 subject to the availability of funding.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, we have
not abandoned the completion phase of the SHEP-3. Mr. Speaker, as I indicated last week when I answered Questions, the areas which remain under the various phases of SHEP-3 remain uncompleted because we have problems with the various communities not providing the adequate complement of the low tension poles. Mr. Speaker, if he says that the poles are adequate and they are lying about, we would investigate and complete that. It should have been brought to our attention a long time ago. I am not sure we are aware of it. Mr. Speaker, if he says so my Ministry would investigate and see to the completion of that particular project.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I
think his officers are aware. I have seen them on a number of occasions but they have not followed up. Mr. Speaker, in the last paragraph he is saying that the other communities would be connected to the national grid of SHEP-4, subject to availability of funds. It is a bit open- ended. Can he let me know whether he has some plans in place to secure funds to complete the exercise?
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, that
is correct. It is subject to availability of funds. We said in this House that we would need about $350 million for the completion of the project. We brought a few finance agreements through the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to Parliament for ratification. Mr. Speaker, we are in the process of sourcing -- there are a few which are in the pipeline and so when these become available, certainly we would come to the House and the House would ratify it, and
that would be the source of funding.
Mr. Speaker, if we do not have it we cannot do it, that is why we said that it is subject to availability of funding. But those communities, to assure him, are within the two thousand that we have chosen under SHEP- 4.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker,
once upon a time I was told here that these communities would be taken care of within the $15 million that was sourced from India. What has happened to that sourcing for funding?
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am not
aware of the hon. Member having been assured that his community would come within the ambit of the $15 million. Mr. Speaker, to think about it, $15 million for a project of $350 million is peanuts in the scheme of things. So I am not aware of that assurance, but he can be assured that in the fullness of time his community would be connected.
SHEP-3 in Ningo/Prampram Constituency (Completion)
Q. 438. Mr. Enoch Teye Mensah asked the Minister for Energy when the Self- Help Electrification Project (SHEP- 3) in the Ningo Prampram constituency would be completed.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, under
the SHEP-3, Phase-3 project, four commu- nities namely Dawa, Mataheko, Mobole and Nyigbenya from the Ningo Prampram constituency were connected in 2004 to the national electricity grid.
The first batch of customers has been connected and is enjoying electricity. Some households however did not register and have to pay for the electricity service indirectly in the first exercise. The
Ministry of Energy in collaboration with the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) is currently in the process of compiling the list of the next batch of customers. It is expected that the final service connections will be completed by the end of the year.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, what happened was that there was shortage of metres and that was why those people could not be registered. They are subsequently being registered and I am waiting for the metres. Mr. Speaker, I want to know when the metres would be available for them to be connected to the grid.
Mr. Hammond 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the issue
is not the availability of metres; it is a question of getting the proper registration done. We are currently undertaking that and as soon as we are satisfied about the completion of that the exercise they would be made available to those customers in the hon. Member's community.
Mr. E. T. Mensah 11:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the
hon. Deputy Minister himself handed me over to somebody who assisted in the registration which was completed long ago. My concern is that we were told that we were waiting for some meters and I want to find out whether those meters have arrived.
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member is right. He came to the Ministry and I handed him over to a relevant individual to deal with that. My understanding is that the exercise is not completed because we do not yet have the full complement of those who have not as yet been registered. Mr. Speaker, if we do have it, we will do it. When this exercise is over, the hon. Member could again come to the office and we would go through this.
Electrification Project for
Beo-Kambusigo Community (Completion)
Q. 439. Mr. Albert Abongo asked the Minister for Energy when the electrification project started for Beo- Kambusigo community in the Bongo District will be completed.
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Energy in response to a request from the Beo-Kambusigo community carried out engineering studies to determine the scope of works for extending electricity to the community.
The implementation of the project has not commenced because the community is yet to provide the full complement of the Low Voltage (LV) poles required for the project.
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, in the Minister's Answer, he gives an indication that the project has not started but I would like to inform him that they have erected poles more than three years now and it is left with only wiring to be done. Since the community has completed the erection of the low voltage poles, I do not know what next he can do for that community.
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am
sorry I just heard the latter part of it; I could not comprehend the earlier part of it, so if he could repeat it.
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am saying
that in the Minister's Answer, he gives an indication that the project has not taken off at all. What I am informing him about is that this project has started. The community has erected the low voltage poles for more than three years now and I am asking the hon. Minister what he can do to ensure that the project is executed for them.
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I believe this is not the situation. These poles are erected under the supervision of the Ministry. At the local level there, the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) supervises the erection of the poles and so they did this with the supervision of ECG in the region. So I do not know what he will say about that.
Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
No, that is not a question.
You have not asked any question yet.
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, what I want
to say is, he is probably not well-informed that they erected these poles under the supervision of the ECG..
Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
So what is your question,
hon. Member for Bongo?
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
My question is that
they are in touch with the people on the ground, and so whose duty is it to ensure that these poles are erected according to the specifications of the ECG?
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I do
not seek to argue with the hon. Member who no doubt is an honourable man. Mr. Speaker, if it is the case that there are poles and we take the view that they are not good but he thinks that they are of the requisite standard we can easily sort it out. But our understanding at the Ministry is that there are some poles which have been planted but they do not match up to the suitability that is required. But Mr. Speaker, we would investigate it and this
matter will be dealt with.
Mr. Abongo 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like
to know from the Minister if he is talking about a general case in this country or that this specific case in Beo-Kambusigo, the poles are not up to specification.
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I assume
that he asked whether it is applicable to the whole country or not. Mr. Speaker, we have instances where our consultants have come to tell us that the communities have planted poles in their various communities which are not of the required standard and the projects have had to be abandoned. So in this particular case, that is the indication we have. It is not peculiar to his area. It does happen in some other areas and we address it.
So Mr. Speaker, I assure him that we would investigate and if that is not the case we would continue the project. If it is so, we would not allow electricity to be connected to a community with hazardous poles which in the end would be detrimental to the community itself.
Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
Hon. Deputy Minister
for Energy, thank you very much for appearing to answer these Questions. You are discharged.
Mr. Hammond 11:40 a.m.
Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
BILLS -- FIRST READING 11:40 a.m.
Mr. A. O. Aidooh 11:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, we
wish to make a request that the Committee considers whether this Bill should be passed as an urgent one.
Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
Yes, the Committee would have to determine whether this is a Bill which must be passed under the certificate of Urgency.
BILLS -- CONSIDERATION 11:40 a.m.
STAGE 11:40 a.m.
  • [Resumption of Consideration from 11/07/06]
    • Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
    Clause 8 -- Investi-
    gation.
    Mr. P. C. Appiah-Ofori 11:40 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker,
    yesterday, this was stood down just to enable us to change the rendition and to agree and after consulting with some other people, the amendment should now read as follows:
    “A person who undertakes an investigation in respect of any impropriety and in the course of that investigation conceals or sup-presses evidence, commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a term of imprisonment of not less than two years and not more than five years.”
    This is what it is now.
    Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
    Deputy Attorney-
    General, was this agreed? What do you say to this?
    Mr. Kwame Osei-Prempeh 11:40 a.m.
    Yes, Mr.
    Speaker, we agreed to that.
    Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
    You agreed to that?
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 11:40 a.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker.
    Mr. Appiah-Ofori 11:40 a.m.
    So Mr. Speaker, I
    have argued extensively in support of the adoption of this amendment and I pray that the whole House should agree to this because unless we try to plug loopholes, we create room for people to deny the Government enough resources to execute its agenda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
    Mr. Haruna Iddrisu 11:40 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I
    beg to support the proposed amendment and to urge hon. Members to give approval to it. Mr. Speaker, even as we debated the principles and policies of this Bill it was evident that the lack of freedom of information or an information disclosure under the Bill may as well hamper the effective implementation of this legislation.
    I believe that the proposed amendment will cure any defect associated with any attempt whether by the person being investigated or the person conducting the investigation to have free and unfettered access to information. I therefore urge hon. Members to support the amendment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
    Question put and amendment agreed
    to.
    Clause 8 as amended ordered to stand
    part of the Bill.
    Clause 9 -- Application to court for assistance.
    Mr. Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, clause 9, paragraph (a), line 2, delete all the words after “destroyed” and substitute
    “concealed or tampered with, or”.
    Mr. Speaker, so the entire rendition will be “that evidence or documents relevant to the investigation are likely to be destroyed, concealed or tampered with, or”, then paragraph (b) follows.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Deputy Attorney-
    General, what do you say to this proposed amendment?
    Mr. Kwame Osei-Prempeh 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, it is all right. I do accept it.
    Question put and amendment agreed to.
    Clause 9 as amended ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Clause 12 -- Protection against victimisation.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to
    move, clause 12, add a new subclause. Mr. Speaker, as you know, this legislation is to protect whistleblowers against any form of reprisals or victimisation in the event that they raise issues of impropriety bordering on public officials. Mr. Speaker, there are issues that may be related to a person and there are issues that may be institutional. The essence or the rationale of this provision is to state -- and with your indulgence, I would like to quote the proposed subclause:
    “If an employee of a Ministry, Department or Agency makes a report of an impropriety in good faith, that Ministry, Department or Agency shall not --
    (c) suspend or terminate t h e e m p l o y m e n t o f that employee; or
    (d ) d i sc r imina te aga ins t that employee.”
    Mr. Speaker, it is just meant to reinforce

    the protection that we are seeking to give whistleblowers against institutional reprisal or victimisation. I therefore urge hon. Members to support the amendment.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I believe that when we look at clause 12 (2), it protects whistleblowers no matter where they come from. And the word “employer”, I believe, will also encompass Ministries, Departments and Agencies. I therefore believe that the proposed amendment is quite superfluous and must be rejected if not withdrawn.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, with your leave, I would want to withdraw the proposed amendment.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    All right, it is withdrawn. Thank you for that.
    Amendment by leave withdrawn.
    rose
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    You have withdrawn that? Yes, hon. Member for Tamale South.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    I have, but Mr. Speaker, in my reading I noticed that in clause 13 -- if I can seek your leave, I think that we all ignored a very essential thing about the construction under clause 13. Mr. Speaker, if you notice, clause 13 (1) the first line, “that” appears twice, so we would have to delete one “that” and then we have to substitute the next following word “whistleblower” with “he”. We have to delete “whistleblower” and substitute “he or she”. So we delete “that” in the first line and in the second line substitute “he” for “whistleblower”.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Member for Tamale South, what were you suggesting in the second line?
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I am suggesting that clause 13, line 1, “that” would have to be deleted.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Yes, and what again?
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, in the second line, the word “whistleblower” becomes repetitive. The sentence starts with “A whistleblower who honestly and reasonably believes that that whistleblower . . .” Which whistleblower?
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, the repetition of the word “that” is correct in the context. Yes, he may talk about the repetition of the word “whistleblower” in the second line. But Mr. Speaker, it is just to cater for the gender “engineers”, that is why the word “whistleblower” has been repeated. Otherwise, if we say “he”, then we should say “he or she”.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Anyway, we have agreed to that already. Let us go to clause 23.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, even that “that”, if we are deleting the “that” and we are maintaining “whistleblower”, then we have to substitute “that” with “a” to read “that a whistleblower”.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Let us make progress. Clause 23 -- You will remember that we have a problem with that. Consideration to continue. Hon. Majority Chief Whip, have you put your heads together?
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:50 a.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the word “compensation” really implies some form of restitution. That is something that has been suffered by somebody and the whistleblower would not have suffered anything to arouse compensation. So we have agreed that the word should be “reward” and not “compensation”. Mr. Speaker, that will have consequential effect wherever “compensation” appears.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Deputy Attorney- General, what do you say to that?
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I
    believe that everywhere that the word “compensation” appears, we have to amend it to read “reward”; that should have consequential effect throughout the Bill.
    Question put and amendment agreed to.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Members, this amendment has consequential effect.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, with your leave, I would withdraw the proposed amendment to clause 23, lines 2 and 3. It has been taken care of under clause 24. So I would want to stand it down.
    Amendment by leave withdrawn.
    Clause 23 as amended ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Clause 24 -- Compensation on
    recovery of money.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Is it the same application?
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 11:50 a.m.
    That is so,
    Mr. Speaker.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Members, it is a
    consequential order.
    Clause 24 as amended ordered to stand
    part of the Bill.
    Clauses 25 and 26 ordered to stand part
    of the Bill.
    Clause 27 -- Disbursement of Fund.
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu noon
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, clause 27, subclause (2), line 2, delete “substantive”.
    Mr. Chireh noon
    Mr. Speaker, I think we should delete it because you cannot
    determine what is “substantive claim” unless the person is allowed to make his claim. So we should delete the “substantive”, otherwise it would be subject to interpretation.
    Question put and amendment agreed
    to.
    Mr. Appiah-Ofori noon
    Mr. Speaker, I beg
    to move, clause 27, subclause (3), line 1, delete “paragraph (b) of subsection (2)” and substitute “paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (2) which shall not be subject to any tax”, so that the clause would read as follows:
    “An amount payable under paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (2) which shall not be subject to any tax shall be paid within a period of not more than 14 days from the date the payment of the money is approved.”
    Mr. Speaker, the Bill states that a whistleblower who whistle-blows and it results in investigation and as a result of the investigation, monies lost to the State are recovered would be rewarded. If the person is rewarded, the amount he would receive would be an income and in accordance with the Income Tax Law, it shall be subject to tax.
    Mr. Speaker, before income tax is calculated, cost must first of all be recovered, but the person would not be able to even indicate the cost he or she incurred in whistle-blowing so that at the end of the day, the whole money would be taken away by the Government and the incentive for him to have done so would not be there.
    So I am saying that if you take such a risk, if you are bold enough to report the impropriety to the State and it results in the recovery of lost funds to the State and he is rewarded, the amount must be given to him without any tax. Please, I urge everybody to support it so that they would be motivated to continue to expose the wrongdoers so that at the end of the day, the nation would be the winner.
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh noon
    Mr. Speaker, I believe that whatever accrues to the person is income and it can be huge money, I do not see the rationale of excluding that amount from being taxed and therefore I oppose the amendment. I believe that it should be subject to tax; whatever is paid to anybody under that should be subject to tax; it should be counted as income and be taxed. I therefore oppose the amendment.
    Mr. Kenneth Dzirasah noon
    Mr. Speaker,
    whether that award qualifies for taxation or not depends on what is the practice. I think that we ought to be advised by the tax experts whether an ex gratia award is subject to tax. If it is not, then the amendment is not necessary. I will propose that we investigate this before we take the next step on this matter.
    Mr. J. B. Aidoo noon
    Mr. Speaker,
    a reward is in a form of an honour. If somebody does something and you are rewarding him, you are honouring the person; I do not see the reason why when you are honouring somebody you tax the person. I believe that it is wrong and therefore I am supporting this amendment.
    Mr. Chireh noon
    Mr. Speaker, I think that
    just as the person is patriotic to whistle- blow, he should be patriotic to perform his duties to the State. [Laughter.] And so in taxing him as we are saying, we should look at all those who get rewards instead of saying he should not be rewarded. In fact, as a Parliament, we should be encouraging people to pay tax.
    Mr. Osafo-Maafo noon
    Mr. Speaker, I
    support the stance taken by the hon. Member for South Tongu, Mr. Dzirasah. To start with, what is the tax position on rewards? If it is taxable, then under no circumstances should he be left out. We should not undermine the tax laws of this land. Even gifts are subject to tax. This is what I am not sure of but if rewards
    are subject to tax, then Mr. Speaker, for heavens sake, it must be subject to tax. If on the other hand the tax experts tell us that it is not subject to tax, then it is another matter; then the amendment is unnecessary. But if it is subject to tax, we should not undermine the tax laws of the land.
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh noon
    Mr. Speaker, a
    reward can be described as a gift and a gift is taxable under our laws. Therefore if a person is being honoured and he is given that amount, it should be taxed. I believe that it must be taxed. For the meantime, let us leave it as it is, as suggested by hon. Dzirasah so that we look at it before the Third Reading to make the investigation. But I believe that for now it should be there.
    Mr. Appiah-Ofori noon
    Mr. Speaker, it looks as if some people do not know why we are here. What we are actually doing -- [Interruptions.]
    Mr. Speaker noon
    Let him go on.
    Mr. Appiah-Ofori noon
    I withdraw that.
    Mr. Speaker noon
    I know you will withdraw that. Hon. Member, we know why we are here. [Laughter.]
    Mr. Appiah-Ofori noon
    Mr. Speaker, I had wanted to say people do not understand what we are doing with this. The intention is to encourage people to expose the wrongdoers in the country so that monies lost to the nation would be recovered. Mr. Speaker, this country can finance its operations without borrowing, but because monies due to the Government do not come in, the Government resorts to borrowing.
    Somebody is taking the risk of exposing his employer and Mr. Speaker, if he is being rewarded, you are telling him, go and pay tax. Based on what? With the tax there must be a cost, set off against the
    income before you determine the tax on the net. Where is the cost involved? You cannot evaluate it. So I am saying that, exceptionally, let us say that to encourage the person to come out boldly to expose the employer, so in the event he loses his job, the Government can pay him something so that he can live on. Let us exempt him from tax. Let us put it in and encourage people to be bold enough to expose the wrongdoers. I do not see why people are not supporting this.
    Question put and amendment negatived.
    Clause 27 as amended ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Clause 28 -- Accounts and audit.
    rose
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    You have not proposed
    any amendment in writing but you can do so now. Yes, go ahead.
    Alhaji Abukari 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, clause
    28 (3) reads --
    “The Auditor-General shall not later than three months after the receipt of the accounts, audit the accounts and forward a copy of the audit report to the Minister.”
    Mr. Speaker, I know that ordinarily, the Auditor-General should report to Parliament and not to the Minister, so I will suggest that we delete “Minister” and put “Parliament” in its place. The Auditor- General reports only to Parliament.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    Hon. Deputy Attorney-
    General, what do you say to that?
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I agree with him that the report be presented to Parliament with a copy to the Minister. So we amend it to read so.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    “To Parliament?”
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, yes,
    or report to the Attorney-General; so it should be “to Parliament and with a copy to Attorney-General”.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    Deputy Attorney-
    General, what do you say? It is elegant to say “Parliament” in simple terms.
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 12:10 p.m.
    “To Parliament
    with a copy to the Minister”.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    Do you have to state that?
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 12:10 p.m.
    Very well, Mr. Speaker.
    Question put and amendment agreed to.
    Clause 28 as amended ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Clauses 29 to 31 ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Clause 32 -- Interpretation.
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, with respect, to clause 32, we have proposed some amendments but before then, may I move, that in clause 32, we delete the definitions for the words “impropriety” and “whistleblower”. Mr. Speaker, this is because they have been appropriately defined in the Bill already.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    You want to remove which words, please?
    Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu: “impropriety” and “whistleblower”; clause 1 (2) defines “impropriety”, and in much the same way, clause 1(3) also defines “whistleblower”.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    So this proposed amendment is to delete “impropriety” and “whistleblower”.
    Question put and amendment agreed to.
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    Yes, continue.
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, clause 32 , Interpretation, add the following:
    ‘“economic crime' means an act which involves the mismanagement or misappropriation of public funds or which causes the loss of such funds to a community or the State.”
    ‘“person' includes an individual, a body of persons, an institution or a corporation”
    ‘“re l ig ious body' means an association, a body or organization which professes adherence to a belief in a system of faith or worship or which is established in pursuance of a religious objective.”
    ‘“reward' means a sum of money payable from the fund to a person who makes a disclosure in accordance with this Act.”
    Mr. Speaker 12:10 p.m.
    Majority Chief Whip, your amendment would include all what is set out on the Order Paper, is that it?
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:10 p.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I support the amendment but subject to some corrections on two of the concepts that have been defined.
    First of all, his definition of “economic crime”, I do not know whether we can
    have a marriage of a few words. I will move for a further amendment of his proposal to read --
    ‘“Economic crime' means crimes commit ted in the course of employment involving . . .”,
    then the rest of his words can follow -- “involving mismanagement or misap- propriation”.
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, that cannot be taken, because it may not necessarily involve the whistleblower; it may not involve the whistleblower. It may exist somewhere and the person may detect it. So I think that the Member may address himself to that.
    Mr. Mahama Ayariga 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I support the amendment except that I also have some reservations about the introduction of certain concepts in the definition of “economic crime”. When you indicate the laws to the community, I think that it is important for us to have some understanding of what community means.
    We know the State and we also know property belonging to the State and when there is a loss, clearly we can tag it as an offence. But in terms of a community, what is his definition of a community in this concept?
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, first of all, my hon. Colleague was here when we had to be adding the words “institutions” to “persons”, taking a cue from CA 1 (4 ) (e) which reads -
    “despite any other law to the contrary, a disclosure of an impropriety is protected if the disclosure is made to one or more of the persons or institutions specified in section (3).”
    Mr. Speaker, you will recollect that we had some difficulty marrying the two concepts, whether “persons” should include institutions and we said that if we define “persons” to include “institutions” then of course we start from CA 1 (4) (e) and cleanse the Bill but if we find it appropriate for purposes of comprehensiveness to include the word “institutions” then it should appear wherever “persons” appear in the context of the usage. That is why we have now defined “persons” for the avoidance of doubt; it is for that purpose.
    Mr. Speaker, the other one that he talks about, the inclusion of the word “community”, again, if you look at CA 11(f), it makes a distinction between the community and the State; that is why we have done that, so that we shall have symmetry in the words. I believe my Friend is persuaded and convinced.
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    The problem is the definition of “economic crime”. Let us agree on something. That is the problem.
    Mr. Osafo-Maafo 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker,
    these amendments are very well intended but certain things must be consistent in various laws where these things occur. Therefore, I think the Attorney-General's Office should assist us.
    Economic crime obviously has been defined by other agencies like Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and other laws and therefore we should not get into a situation where the definition here is different from elsewhere. I think the consistency is important. When we come to “persons”, we have the Interpretation Act, et cetera. May I humbly suggest that the Attonrey-General's Office and
    Mr. William Ofori Boafo 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I would like to support what the hon. Member for Akim Oda just said. There is the need for us to maintain some consistency in legislation over here and in this country. As he rightly pointed out, I will not go further but I will just refer the House to Act 458, that is the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act which introduces special offences into the Criminal Code. And under chapter 4 of the Criminal Code, there are special offences and these special offences touch and concern financial crimes which may be classified as economic crimes.
    If I may refer to section 179 (a) of the Criminal Code (1960) as amended, you will see that under subsection (1), we have “persons who by wilful act or omission cause loss, damage or injury to the property of any public body or any agency of the State commits an offence”; then going further under sub-section 2, it says:
    “Any person who in the course of any transaction or business with a public body or any agency of the State intentionally causes damage or loss whether economic or otherwise to the body or agency commits an offence.”
    It goes on to say:
    “Any person through whose wilful, malicious or fraudulent action or
    omission, the State incurs a financial loss or the security of the State is endangered commits an offence.”
    Then under section 179 (c), it provides:
    “Any person who while holding a public office corruptly or dishonestly abuses the office for a private benefit or not being a holder of a public office acts or is found to have acted in collaboration with a person holding public office for the latter to corruptly or dishonestly abuse the office for private profit or benefit commits an offence.”
    If so, what the hon. Member for Akim Oda suggested is something I think, Mr. Speaker, we should take into account. Mr. Speaker should refer this matter to the Attorney-General's Office for them to make a consistent legislative process for us.
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    Deputy Attorney- General, what do you say to that? That we defer this?
    Mr. Osei-Prempeh 12:20 p.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker, I told my hon. Friend that I agree with him in principle but we should give it to the draftspersons. In a law, specifically, you can define something. Interpretation comes into assistance when there is doubt along the interpretation but when the law has been defined, the content of
    that particular law, that is what applies. Therefore what he is saying is not wholly true. And what he is saying does not even come in. Economic crime cannot be defined in section 179 (a). But Mr. Speaker, I think it will be best if we leave it to the draftspersons.
    Mr. Speaker 12:30 p.m.
    Hon. Members, I think it is proper that we defer this and refer it to the draftsmen for the appropriate advice.
    Roman numeral (xiii) - Long Title. Chairman of the Committee, there is an amendment, please move it. Do you want to withdraw or abandon it?
    Chairman of the Committee 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, Long Title, line 2, before “practices” insert “corrupt”.
    Question put and amendment agreed to.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, Long Title, line 2, before “unlawful” insert “economic crime”.
    This will be consistent with clause 1 (1) as has already been approved by this House.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I see that he wants to have the Long Title being in alignment with the body of the enactment, but it appears to me that words like ‘unlawful' or ‘unethical conduct' are big enough to include economic crimes. So it adds nothing to the Long Title - if he could withdraw it.
    Mr. Speaker 12:30 p.m.
    Hon. Member for Tamale South, you may have to reconsider your position.
    Mr. H. Iddrisu 12:30 p.m.
    Yes, I will consider
    withdrawing it.
    Mr. Speaker 12:30 p.m.
    Thank you.
    Amendment by leave withdrawn.
    The Long Title as amended ordered to stand part of the Bill.
    Mr. Speaker 12:30 p.m.
    We have come to the end of the Consideration Stage. Deputy Majority Leader.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that we adjourn proceedings till tomorrow morning at 10.00 o'clock.
    Mr. Yieleh Chireh 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion.
    ADJOURNMENT 12:30 p.m.