Debates of 10 Mar 2021

MR SPEAKER
PRAYERS 11 a.m.
VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS AND THE OFFICIAL REPORT 11 a.m.
Mr Speaker 11 a.m.
Hon Members, there is no formal communication today, so, I will move to item numbered 3 on the Order Paper - Correction of Votes and Proceedings and the Official Report. We will start with the Votes and Proceedings of Tuesday, 9th March, 2021.
Page 1…11 --
rose
Mr Speaker 11 a.m.
Yes, Hon Member?
Mr J. A. Jinapor 11 a.m.
Mr Speaker, on page 9 of the Votes and Proceedings, item numbered 14:
“The Rt Hon Speaker recognised in the House the presence of the following…”
Mr Speaker, I have been looking through the list and conspicuously missing is the name of the very beautiful wife of Rt Hon Speaker. If you would recall, when you mentioned her name, we received the announcement with applause. One would have thought that the name would find expression in the Votes and Proceedings. So, could the Table Office do the needful by recognising the beautiful wife of the Rt Hon Speaker?
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
Mr Speaker 11 a.m.
Table Office, kindly take note.
Hon Members, the Votes and Proceedings of Tuesday, 9th March, 2021 as corrected is hereby adopted as the true record of proceedings.
Hon Members, we will take the Votes and Proceedings of Friday, 5th March, 2021.
Page 1…6 --
rose
Mr Speaker 11 a.m.
Yes, Hon Minority Chief Whip?
Alhaji Muntaka 11:10 a.m.
Sorry, the Hon Deputy Minority Leader has just drawn my attention that we are doing the correction for Friday, 5th March, 2021, but this one is for Tuesday, 9th March, 2021.

Mr Speaker, we are on Friday, but this has to do with that of Tuesday. On both Friday and yesterday, the Hon Larbi, Oscar Ofori had not been around, but he has been marked present. There is a reason I would want him to be properly captured. He should be properly captured because he is not around, and could not have been present on both Friday and yesterday, so, the Table Office may please take note. It has to do with the Hon Oscar Ofori, who is the Hon Member of Parliament for Aowin.
Mr Speaker 11:10 a.m.
The Table Office should please take note.
Page 7 -- 19
Hon Members, the Votes and Proceedings of the Eighteenth Sitting of the First Meeting of the First Session held on Friday, 5th March, 2021 as corrected, is hereby adopted as the true records of proceedings.
Hon Members, I admitted a number of Statements, but in view of
the Business of the day, I would want to know from Leadership, whether I should take one or two of the Statements or move straight to public Business.
Mr Frank Annoh-Dompreh 11:10 a.m.
Mr Speaker, we would plead for your kindness to go straight to public Business, and probably shelve the Statements to an appropriate time.
Mr Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Yes, Minority Leadership?
Alhaji Muntaka 11:10 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I agree with my Hon Colleague from the Majority bench. Since we are to debate the State of the Nation for two days, if we could concentrate and maximise the debate on the State of the Nation Address (SONA), I think it would be useful. So, we would be grateful if we could go straight into public Business.
Mr Speaker, I thank you.
Mr Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Hon Members, we would move straight to the Commencement of Public Business, item numbered 5 -- Presentation of Papers. I would want us to present that Paper before we move on to the SONA. Is it not ready?
Mr Annoh-Dompreh 11:10 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I had engaged the Hon
Mr Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Hon Members, we would move on to the item numbered 6 -- Motion, that this honourable House thanks H. E. the President for the Message on the State of the Nation which he delivered to Parliament on Tuesday, 9th March, 2021. The Motion is to be moved by the Hon Member of Parliament for Okaikoi Central, the Hon Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah. Hon Member, you may do so now.
I have been guided by Leadership that both the Hon Member who moved the Motion and the seconder would have 25 minutes to do so. That is the allocation. Senior Hon Members of Parliament would be given 15 minutes, and the other Hon Members of Parliament would be given 10 minutes each. Again, I have a list from both Sides of the House, and they propose to take 12 contributions from each Side of the House today. So, we are expecting to listen to 24 different voices, views and ideas.
To be able to do this, the Rt Hon Speaker would have to go by the rules, and so, I would be very strict and limit heckling, and hold you to the time allocation. So, Hon Members, let us take that on board as we commence the deliberations on this Motion.
Hon Member, you may now move the Motion.
MOTIONS 11:10 a.m.
MESSAGE ON THE STATE OF 11:10 a.m.
Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah (NPP - Okaikoi Central) 11:20 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House thanks H. E. the President for the Message on the State of the Nation which he delivered to Parliament on Tuesday, 9th March,
2021.
Mr Speaker, this is in compliance with the provisions under article 67 of the 1992 Constitution, and with your kind permission, I read. It says:
“The President shall, at the beginning of each session of Parliament and before a dissolution of Parliament, deliver to Parliament a message on the state of the nation.”
Mr Speaker, this provision in the 1992 Constitution can be traced also to article 45 of the 1969 Constitution of Ghana, and also article 54 of the 1979 Constitution of Ghana. I believe that it is one of the accountability processes that the framers of the Constitution put in place to ask the President or the person who holds the Executive power to always report to the people's representative, and update them on his policies and programmes, his challenges and successes, and his vision ahead for the country.
Mr Speaker, let me borrow a line or two from the prayer that you read to us this morning, especially, the second part. It says: “Oh God, grant us a vision of our country, fair as it might be, a country of righteousness, where none shall wrong his neighbour…” This is where the emphasis is: “A country of plenty, where evil and poverty would be done away with…”

Mr Speaker, I believe that the vision of the President, the summary that he gave to us yesterday, was very honest. The President did not mince words about the challenges that he has gone through within the last four years, and the successes that he has chalked.

Mr Speaker, let me share with you what countries have been doing in the midst of this pandemic because at the heart of the President's Message was the economy. I have with me a report of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which was published in May. It lists some programmes that various countries, including Ghana, are undertaking in this periof of the pandemic.

Mr Speaker, Uganda has used part of the contingency fund of the budget to finance approximately US$80 million to support critical sectors such as health and security at the frontline of the pandemic. In Nigeria, a fiscal stimulus in the form of COVID-19 Intervention Fund of US$1.4 billion has been approved by the President to support healthcare facilities to provide relief for tax payers and incentivise employers to retain and recruit staff during the downturn.

Mr Speaker, at the turn of the Fourth Republic, every leader has encountered certain challenges, and there are measures and strategies and programmes that they have undertaken to cushion the citizenry. Mr Speaker, what did the President of Ghana do in the midst of the pandemic? He came here with an elaborate programme and he outlined his vision and a long term programme to bring back the economy to life.
Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah (NPP - Okaikoi Central) 11:30 a.m.
numbers registered as their Tax Identification Numbers (TIN). It goes a long way to broaden the tax net. It is a good strategy; a lot of people would be brought under the tax net and we would stand to raise a lot of tax revenue if we adopt the right strategies using the data that we have captured.

Mr Speaker, the infrastructural subsector, under the President's Address which includes the housing subsector and the roads sector was not left out. The President declared a second year of roads and I believe every Member of Parliament (MP) here has challenges with his or her roads in their constituencies. I believe the people of Abeka Lapaz would not be left out.

Mr Speaker, we need to give the President and the Government all the support they require to ensure that we all get fair and decent access to road networks within our constituencies. This, I believe that road networks that would create the necessary opening for the country must be encouraged. The Tema to Prampram Road, Tema to Akosombo Road, the Accra- Kumasi dualisation Project and the Accra to Takoradi Road must all be supported.

The Minister for Roads and Highways ought to be encouraged and supported by this House because we need a lot of money to complete the Suame Interchange, the Tamale Interchange and the PTC and the Paa Grant Interchanges in the Western Region.

Mr Speaker, we had a session with the Minister for Works and Housing a couple of weeks ago and he promised to introduce a new housing fund. We all talk about the housing deficit of about two million but we have not put in place the right strategies to ensure that we get that gap a bridged. We must also encourage the Minister for Works and Housing to bring the right legislation to the House and give us an assurance that the gap that he has identified and the strategy that he told the Committee about when he appeared before us, which has been captured in the President's Address, would see the light of day.

Mr Speaker, defence and interior and the security of the State cannot go without mention. The Police Service now has helicopters to undertake its activities. The vehicle fleet of the Police Service has been increased, the military housing project is ongoing, the Ghana Immigration Service is seeing a massive improvement in their housing deficit

among others. This requires some collaboration with the security agencies to ensure that all these projects are completed, so that they get the expected benefits from these projects.

Mr Speaker, the Government under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo over the last three years has taken the conditions of service of the military seriously. Peace-keeping allowances were increased which had not been done over a period and I must commend the Minister for Defence for leading that charge.

On access to energy, we all know the challenges that we face in the energy sector. We have a new Minister in the person of Hon Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the Member of Parliament for Manhyia South. The energy sector needs a lot of financial investment from Government. Government has done its part by clearing a lot of the Energy Sector Levy Act (ESLA) debt according to the Report of the Chamber for Bulk Oil Distributors of Ghana.

Government has paid its portion but we still have issues with the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and the threats that they pose

especially when Government is in the process of negotiating some of these IPPs. We believe that the new Minister for Energy would ensure that this is done. Secondly, local content enhancement and enforcement rules must be supported and I believe that it is going to be done by the new Minister.

Mr Speaker, 2023 presents a very good opportunity for us as a country to develop our sports infrastructure because Ghana would be hosting the 2023 African Games. According to the President in his Address, the dynamic Minister for Sports has to ensure that the Local Organising Committee (LOC) that he has put in place connects well to develop the sports infrastructure and give to our athletes the right incentives and resources, and thus equip the National Sports Authority. Everything that the country requires ought to be put in place for Ghana to be able to host this very important tournament.

Mr Speaker, the President also touched on the chieftaincy institution which is very sacred and has been catered for under our Constitution. He also touched on the tourism and creative arts sector. We have a lot to do and develop under the domestic tourism subsector. Lately, we have all been stuck here in Ghana and nobody has been able to travel anywhere.
Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah (NPP - Okaikoi Central) 11:40 a.m.
This gives us the opportunity to look at our domestic tourist sites and it is an encouraging time for the Minister of Tourism Arts and Culture, Hon Awal to look at it, develop its Culture and the Creative Arts, and find the right strategy between the Executive, the Legislature and the general public to patronise our tourism sector.
Mr Speaker, thousands of jobs stand to be created from the following project -- the Pwalugu Dam which is on page 26 of the Address and has a solar project, about 25,000 hectares of land to be irrigated, a 60 megawatt power plant to be built and it is the single largest investment in the whole of the Northern Region costing about US$1 billion. I believe that we must commend the Government and the President for leading the charge to open up the country, especially the northern part to ensure that businesses thrive.
The Boankra Project in the Ashanti Region which the Ministry of Trade and Industry is leading to make Kumasi in the Ashanti Region the second largest industrial area in the country, ought to also be encouraged. The railway sector which is also part of the infrastructural sector that I am talking about has secured a facility of over US$500 million from the Amandi Group to develop the railway
subsector in the Western Region. This ought to be encouraged to ensure that it is completed.
Mr Speaker, the President also touched on the water and sanitation subsector, that over 5,500 communities have been declared as open-defecation free communities. This is a pat on the back of the Minister, Hon Cecilia Abena Dapaah. A lot of water projects have been initiated, such as the Tamale, Yendi, Damongo, Techiman, Wenchi and the Keta Water Projects among others. The Sunyani Water Project which is over US$183 million is included.
Mr Speaker, to conclude, I would touch on the transport and aviation subsectors which have a new Minister, as the aviation subsector has been added to the transport portfolio. The President in his Address, gave us the indication that approval has been given for a new national carrier to be established. I believe that Hon Kwaku Ofori Asiamah would ensure and carry that through.
Mr Speaker, yesterday was a very important day for the House. We had a lot of visitors, members of the diplomatic corps, members of the Judiciary -- talk about the court decision and a lot of issues. As a House, our conduct was also put to test and we must as a House, know when to be measured.
Mr Speaker, the country is looking at us and we have to as a matter of urgency, show leadership and let the country know that the votes they cast on December 7 to require us to work together and cooperate as a House, was not done in vain. We need to earn the public's respect and work accordingly.

I thank you very much, Mr Speaker. [Hear! Hear!
Mr Speaker 11:40 a.m.
The Hon Member used 21 minutes 42 seconds, which is commendable because he was allocated 25 minutes but he fell short by a few minutes. It does not necessarily mean that when an Hon Member is given 10 minutes, he or she must use all the 10 minutes because we need more time for other Hon Members to also contribute.
Mr Eric Opoku (NDC -- Asunafo South) 11:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to second the Motion and I thank you for the opportunity to contribute to it.
Mr Speaker, in articles 67 and 34 (2), there are clear indications as to what the framers of the 1992 Constitution expect the State of the Nation Address to contain. The
President in dealing with the Ghanaian economy, made an emphatic statement on page 4 of the Message on the State of the Nation which with your permission, I beg to quote:
“Mr Speaker, my Government found the resources to cushion the impact of the pandemic because we are good managers of the economy and we are good protectors of the public purse.''
Mr Speaker, it is the duty of this House to critically interrogate this statement whether indeed, the President and his team are good managers of our economy and whether or not they are good protectors of the public purse.
In all sincerity, the true state of the nation now is that Ghana is in a state of comatose where hopelessness, wretchedness, insecurity and despondency are the facial expre- ssions of many Ghanaians. [Hear! Hear!] There is extreme polarisation with accentuated poverty among Ghanaians. The last four years of the Nana Addo-led Government has plundered this nation into a quandary.
In December 2016, the total debt of our nation stood at GH¢122 billion because that was what the President told this House in the Message on the
rose
Mr Speaker 11:40 a.m.
Hon Member, just hold your breath. The former Hon Deputy Minister for Finance is on her feet.
Hon Member, why are you on your feet?
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague on the other Side said we have securitised our future revenue, so I want to know the exact revenue.
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Hon Members, the Standing Orders are clear as to when a debate could be interrupted and I would stick to that. So, when you get up to interrupt, kindly refer me to the Order under which you have the authority for the interruption.

Since you failed to do that and your submission does not draw my attention to any area, you are completely out of order.

So, the Hon Member would please continue.
Mr Eric Opoku 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
They have securitised receivables from the GETFund, taken US$1.5 billion from the Chinese and so, in the next 10 years, even though Ghanaians will be paying taxes through the GETFund for the development of education in Ghana, a sizeable percentage of the receivables belongs to the Chinese for the next 10 years.
Mr Speaker, so, even though their Government has the term of four years, they have securitised future revenue in terms of GETFund for the next 10 years. Now, they have also securitised receivables from the Energy Sector Levy.
We all know that His Excellency former President Mahama, caused to be imposed on Ghanaians the Energy Sector Levies to enable us pay off the debts hindering the energy sector from being efficient and effective in the distribution of power in this country.
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Hon Member, once again, we are being interrupted. Yes, Hon former Deputy Minister?
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I rise under Standing Order 92.
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Order!
Hon Member, it is Standing Order 93 -- Content of Speeches.
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you.
Mr Speaker, with your permission I read Standing Order 92(1). It says 11:50 a.m.
“No Member shall interrupt any other Member except: --
(a) by rising to a point of order, that is where any of these
Orders is alleged to have been infringed upon …
(b) to elucidate some matter raised by the Member…
Mr Speaker, emphasis on (b) which is where I seek to base my argument on. My Hon Colleague on the other Side said --[Interruption] -- this is intimidation from the other Side but I just want to put it out there that --
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Hon Member, complete reading the Standing Order you mentioned.
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, Standing Order 92(1) (b): “to elucidate some matter raised by the Member speaking in the course of speech, provided that the member speaking is willing to give way --
Mr Speaker --
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
So, I will have to ask the Hon Member whether he is willing to give way -- [Laughter] -- and resume his seat --
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, he is complaining; he is deceiving the House.
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Hon Member, that is why I asked you to read the
Standing Order because you are trying to explain something that he has said and he must be willing to allow you to explain when he is not capable or willing to do that, then he will give you that opportunity. That is why they said that.
So, I have to ask the Hon Member whether he is willing to give you way to expatiate or elucidate.
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
We all know that he will not give me way.
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
That is the Standing Order you want to come under. So, please, resume your seat.
Mrs Osei-Asare 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I have the Standing Order number --
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
Hon Eric Opoku, are you willing to give way and resume your seat?
Mr Eric Opoku 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, no. She should wait for her turn -- [Laughter] --
Mr Speaker 11:50 a.m.
In the circumstances, the Speaker cannot compel him to give way and resume his seat. So, please continue.
Mr Eric Opoku 11:50 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I indicated that they have also
collateralised cocoa for a loan of US$600 million and as we speak, COCOBOD's indebtedness is over US$1 billion.
Mr Speaker, you recalled that in the last Parliament, which was just last year, this House approved the Syndicated Loan Facility to enable COCOBOD purchase cocoa in Ghana. An amount of US$1.3 billion was approved for COCOBOD and as we speak, the farmers have produced the cocoa and sold it to COCOBOD through the LDCs but they are unable to pay them. This is the true state of our nation; the sad story of the Ghanaian cocoa farmer and this is a huge disincentive to cocoa production in this country.
Mr Speaker, we can also not forget the collateralisation of bauxite in the Atiwa Forest area for the Synohydro deal. As we speak, the IMF has cautioned Ghana on that deal because looking at what is happening, Ghana is likely to default and if this happens, the Chinese will take over the bauxite. The danger now is the deposits of unmined bauxite in the Atiwa forest area and nobody can controvert this.
So, this is the true state of our nation; spending our revenue, taking loans on behalf of Ghanaians and also collateralising future revenue. Where lies the hope for our nation? What is
Mr Speaker, I wish to read page 9 of the State of the Nation Address noon
“We have for the first time, in a long while become a net exporter of food as opposed to the days of importation of tomatoes and plantain”.
Mr Speaker, since time immemorial, Ghana has produced plantain in excess of her demand during the peak season.

Mr Speaker, during the peak season, the problem we have in Ghana is that we do not have storage facilities so when they are produced in abundance and in excess of our demand, we are unable to store them for the lean season. So, in the lean season we encounter problems of lack of plantain. To say that we import plantain - from where?

Mr Speaker, the President said that we no longer import tomatoes. That is factually inaccurate and I would want to demonstrate to this House

that the President was economical with the reality.

Mr Speaker, I decided to probe further to know why Ghana would import fresh or frozen tomatoes. In 2019, Ghana imported tomatoes at a cost of US$758,000 just from Burkina Faso alone. We also import tomatoes from Netherlands, Italy, Morocco, Luxemburg, United Kingdom, United States of America, Egypt, Canada and even Lebanon and these are either fresh or frozen tomatoes. This is the state of Ghana and everybody knows this because it is all over. So, why would the President say that we no longer import tomatoes?

Mr Speaker, identifying and understanding the challenge of a nation is enough to enable a person to proffer solutions to address the challenge. Here we are and the President is not seized with the facts so how can he proffer solutions to address the challenges that confronts us? Again, the President indicates that in spite of COVID-19 --
Mr Speaker noon
Hon Member, please begin to conclude. I have taken note of the interruption. I have not stopped you, I said that begin to conclude. I have observed that you have 25 minutes.
Mr E. Opoku noon
Mr Speaker, the President also indicated that in spite of COVID-19, Ghana did not run out of food; we consumed what we produced and even exported. This is also inaccurate because at some point in time in 2020, the Poultry Farmers Association had difficulty getting maize and the Hon Minister for Agriculture had to issue permit to enable them import maize into this country to support local production. How can a Government issue permit for people to import maize and the same government will say that they have not imported maize?
Mr Speaker, I have the records on the importation of maize into Ghana from 1960 to 2020 - Index Mundi.
Mr E. Opoku 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, everything is available because this is international trade and it passes through international platforms so if Ghana is not willing to provide it then other nations would provide it. It is important to note that in 2017, Ghana imported 19,000 metric tonnes; in 2018 it was 28,000 metric tonnes; in 2019 it was 20,000 metric tonnes and in 2020 it was 20,000 metric tonnes to supplement local production.

Mr Speaker, the President also talked about cocoa pricing that they have secured living income differentials of US$400 per tonne of cocoa and that has increased the producer price of cocoa.

Yesterday, I read about that and it came out strongly that in 2020, the world market price of cocoa, the Free on Board (FOB) price was US$2,666 and this was supported by the Bank of Ghana. So, when we add the US$400 living income differentials, it was above US$3,000. So, when we multiply the GH¢660 per bag by the tonne, we would see that cocoa farmers were given just 61

per cent of the FOB price yet they touted almost 80 per cent everywhere as if they had done something.

Mr Speaker, the Budget Statement would give us another opportunity to interrogate these issues further but it is important to indicate that the cocoa sector is the life blood of the Ghanaian economy. So, if this sector is collapsing then obviously Ghana's economy is sick and there is nothing we can do about that.

It is important for us to look at that sector, do the necessary injections and revive the sector. Production has been declining since they assumed office and I can give them all the figures. Mr Speaker, if Hon Afenyo- Markins does not know, cocoa production has been declining since 2017 and the fisheries sector is collapsing - everything is down. So, what have they achieved in spite of all the huge amount of borrowing?

Mr Speaker, my last point is very important because the President indicated that in the last four years, they have recruited 100,000 health professionals and this is on page 7 of the Address. Mr Speaker, just two weeks ago, the current Hon Minister for Health appeared before the Appointments Committee and under Oath, he indicated that in the last four years, they had created 90,000 jobs. We subjected him to strict proof and he promised to bring a template to the

Committee but we are not interested in templates because this is a House of record and we are seized with the records.

If there is recruitment, the people who have been recruited would be paid so the Budget would make provision for this payment. We have the 2020 Budget Statement and the ceiling is 128,016 health workers in the whole of Ghana. At the end of 2020, we should have 128,016 health workers in Ghana, but in 2017 when they took Office, we had 103,699 health workers. When we do a subtraction over the four year period, they have added 24,317 health workers. Mr Speaker, these are the figures in their own Budget Statement yet, the Hon Minister appeared before the Committee and indicated that they have created 90,000 jobs and the President courageously emphasised and touted it as a monumental achievement that they have recruited 100,000 health professionals within the last four years.

Mr Speaker, how can they defend this? This is palpably false, and we expected His Excellency to be candid to the good people of Ghana; to be honest and indicate to us exactly what is happening in our nation.

Mr Speaker, the President also stated as one of the achievements that they have bought helicopters for the Ghana Police Service.
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Member, once again, hold your breath. I am taking note of the interruptions.
Yes, Hon Member?
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, this time, I come under Order 91(a) of the Standing Orders. The Hon Member --
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Order 91 -?
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, Standing Order 91(a).
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
I would want to follow you. You said, Order?
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, Order 91 reads:
“91. Debates may be interrupted
(a)by a point of order being raised;”
Mr Speaker, this House is a House of record. I think you should allow me to put it out there that what the Minister said was that it covered a period of four years, and I can let you know that the Ministry of --
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
I come under Standing Order 30(d).
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Now the Order that has been breached is Order 30(d). Go on and read it.
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it says:
“30. The following acts or conduct shall constitute a breach of privilege or contempt of Parliament.
(d) presenting to Parliament frivolous, false, scandalous, groundless or fabricated documents or such allegations in a petition;”
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Member, you said (b) or (d)?
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, (e):
“(e) any act or conduct calculated or intended to deceive Parliament or any of its Committees;”
(f) deliberate misleading of Parliament or any of its Committees;”.
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Member, the Standing Order you are referring to is under contempt of Parliament or breach of privilege. When you make your submission then I could give the consequential orders.
I am just drawing your attention to the import of the Order, that it goes beyond just breach of ordinary Order. This one deals with breach of contempt or privilege. So when you refer to it and you are able to substantiate it, it is a matter I have to refer to a committee. This is the essence.
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
All right, Mr Speaker. But would you permit me?
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
You can continue.
Mrs Osei-Asare 12:10 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
My Hon Colleague on the other Side says the current Hon Minister for Health misled the House, but I can say on authority that Government, through the Ministry of Finance, granted financial clearance of 83,000
people. And so the Hon Minister is not lying; we indeed made sure all the financial clearance was utilised. Mr Speaker, so we have evidence. My Colleague on the other Side is misleading the House.
Again, my Colleague said that we have securitised the flows of GETFund to the Chinese for 10 years. We were in this House when it was brought here. We never did anything like that. It is rather with the local banks that we have securitised the flows of GETFund. And so, I just would want to put it out here that it is never with the Chinese but with the local banks, helping to strengthen the local banks to help them grow so that we can improve on the economy.
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Members, please take your time, read the Standing Orders carefully. Try to appreciate them and apply them accordingly. What she did is just to disagree with the perspective in which you are coming from. And so you have to take that on board, but she would have the opportunity to put across her perspective and interpretation of those figures or submissions that were made here and either approved or disapproved by the House.
She would also be looking at the budget figures that you are referring to, and then she would also make her submission. It is not a matter that I can refer to the Privileges Committee, but it is something to guide you in your submissions.
So Hon Member, you may continue?
Mr E. Opoku 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
My Hon Colleague has even compounded the confusion. The Minister for Health gave us 90,000 jobs. The Hon former Deputy Minister for Finance is now talking about 83,000 jobs, and the President is talking about 100,000 jobs. So which is which?
We are saying that when you recruit, they must be paid. That is why they need clearance, which is why they provide in their budget to be able to pay them in addition to the numbers. However, the figures here do not support the argument they are advancing, which is a fact.
Mr Speaker, I was talking about the purchase of helicopters. The President mentioned that as one of the achievements; that they have purchased three helicopters for the Ghana Police Service, and same is stated in the 2020 Budget. In
rose
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Yes, Hon Majority Leader?
[Some Hon Members start to sing.] --
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Members, this is not a musical theatre, please. I do not want to talk about what happened yesterday. Do not turn Parliament into a playground. I would not tolerate that at all.
Please, Hon Majority Leader?
Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, you have stopped the time from running against my Colleague. You gave him 25 minutes. He has spoken for 26 minutes and 24 seconds.
Mr Speaker 12:10 p.m.
Hon Majority Leader, I am in control. I have taken away the interruptions. I gave the Hon Member who moved the Motion 25 minutes. He spoke for less than 25 minutes. Nobody interrupted him. And so I am taking note of what has happened. When you give somebody minutes and the interruptions take five minutes, definitely, you have to make for the five minutes.
So I am taking note of it because the Information, Communications Technology (ICT) Department has done a good job, and you can follow it right from the start, the second up to the end. You can follow it. So, Hon Majority Leader, I am in control. Do not worry about that. Go on.
Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the point I am making is that as I am speaking now, you have stopped the time. So it is 26 minutes and 24 seconds. Anytime there is any
interruption, you stop it and we look at it. I was just saying that he is inviting me into this and I am refusing that temptation. [Laughter] -- Mr Speaker, only to remind you that because he has spoken more than the time allotted to him, deliberately, he wants to invite people so that he would have the opportunity to prolong for his own time. But the truth is that anytime anybody has interrupted, you have stopped the running of the time. He has already spoken for 26 minutes, 24 seconds. That is the point I am drawing your attention to and I know you are in control but be in control properly.
Mr Speaker 12:20 p.m.
Hon Majority Leader, I know that I am in control. So I was expecting you not to be tempted to rise because he had finished his 25 minutes but then you stood up so I definitely stopped it. So I am aware now that it is 26 minutes, 24 seconds, which is more than the 25 minutes.
So, Hon Member, in conclusion?
Mr E. Opoku 12:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, I thank the Hon Majority Leader for refusing to respond to my invitation to indicate to us the whereabouts of the three helicopters.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, this Government has brought untold hardship to the good people of Ghana, especially in the district assemblies.
Mr Speaker, for the first time, the NPP Government contended --
Mr Speaker 12:20 p.m.
Hon Member, you cannot conclude with the introduction of a new matter. In conclusions you do not add new matters so please, your last sentence.
Mr E. Opoku 12:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you very much for the opportunity. In short, I wanted to draw the attention of Ghanaians and the House to the fact that Ghana's GETFund has been collateralised; cocoa trees collateralised, Ghana Infrastructural Fund, collateralised; Ghana's bauxite, collateralised; and Ghana's energy sector levies, collateralised; and now, they want to do same to royalties.
Mr Speaker 12:20 p.m.
Hon Members, we would now listen to Hon Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the Minister for Energy.
You are a senior Member so you are entitled to 15 minutes.
Mr Speaker, so I only want clarity on that 12:20 p.m.
None

Mr Speaker, Order 30 (d), (e) and (f), for instance, if an Hon Member

is debating and is misleading the House, his privilege to debate can be truncated by raising a point of Order under Order 91 and then come to support it with 30(e). One can say he is interrupting the debate on the basis of a misleading fact.

Mr Speaker, if you look at article 115 of the 1992 Constitution, which gives us privilege to debate, it talks about the fact that it is only within Parliament that such freedom could be curtailed. How do we curtail it? By coming under these rules to say that something is misleading and inaccurate. Then, one may be within the rule to interrupt.

So, Mr Speaker, I only want to be sure that that path we took in the Sixth Parliament is the same as today. This is because in my view, humbly, my respected sister was within that directive by the Chair of the Sixth Parliament when it was directed that one should come from Order 91 but go back to 30 and pick the appropriate subheadings. Mr Speaker, that is all I want from you. If you are in agreement, fine. Other than that, it becomes difficult to now interrupt a debate on a point of Order as to which other provision would one support his point of Order with. The Hon Member may have his bite.
Alhaji Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka 12:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, with the
greatest of respect, my Hon Colleague should advert his mind to the Standing Orders and I am going to help him. When an Hon Member quotes Order 91 for point of Order, then he makes the necessary reference; for example Order 93(2). I would first say that an Hon Member is out of Order coming under Order 91 then I make reference to the fact that insulting language is being used in Order 93(2). That is what it means. One cannot just use Order 30, which is a specific Order with respect to privileges and contempt. So one cannot use that in debates in the Chamber. Hon Afenyo- Markin should check the heading. There are headings in the Standing Orders. From Order 86 to 96 it is talking about rules of debate. So during debates, that is where to navigate but Order 30 is talking about a different matter.
So, Mr Speaker, you were right. With the greatest of respect, the Hon Deputy Majority Leader should advert his mind to how we use the Standing Orders. The Standing Orders are not just arbitrary things that one can quote from and make reference to something that is happening under bills. If it is Consideration Stage, there are provisions on how to deal with them. If it is about quorum, there is a place to look for it. But Order 30 cannot
be used when we are debating in the Chamber. Order 86 to Order 96 could be used. That is where the navigation can happen.
So, Mr Speaker, the Hon Deputy Majority Leader should allow the debate to continue. This is because as he knows, we have so many speakers and time is running. Let us not spend much time dragging this matter.
Mr Speaker, I may draw your attention to make a ruling so that we can move on, having in mind that a Speaker's ruling in any Parliament is not binding on another Speaker. We should just know that.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr Speaker 12:30 p.m.
Hon Members, we are not departing from the previous ruling.

When a debate is proceeding and an Hon Member wants to interrupt it, he is entitled to come under Order 91. The Hon Member came under Order 91. Now, under Order 91, there is the freedom to choose which subpart of it, and she elected to go by Order 91 (a), that is:

“By a point of order being raised.”
Minister for Energy (Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh) (MP) 12:30 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, I rise to
thank the President of the Republic for giving us the Message on the State of the Nation. It was very appropriate and apt about what is happening in Ghana.
Mr Speaker, the State of the Nation Address has two aspects 12:30 p.m.
The historical aspect and the current aspect. It was exciting to hear from the President about the Obaatan Pa Cares Ghana Programme. It is a programme to bring US$100 billion into the economy to really transform the economy from COVID-19 times to post COVID-19 situations.
Mr Speaker, those of us who were in education were very excited about the Obaatan Pa Cares Ghana Programme because the first project was supporting commercial farming; the second project was about building the country's light manufacturing sector; the third project is developing engineering machine tools and Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) digital economy. Those of us in education and training see it as digitising Ghana's education.
Mr Speaker, the sixth project is, establishing Ghana as a flat regional hub and it translates into education as establishing Ghana as an educational hub in the West African Sub Region. Already, a lot of West African citizens
are flooding into the country to take advantage of our very good educational institutions.
Mr Speaker, the seventh one is about reviewing and optimising the implementation of Government flagship programmes. I will speak about the Free Senior High School and how it is transforming industry, education and training in this country.
Mr Speaker, the last one talks about creating jobs for young people. Again, the President talked about the Job and Skills Programme which the World Bank has activated and it became effective in January, 2021. It has brought US$200 million into the economy to help us train Ghanaians for the jobs that people can get and earn a living.
Mr Speaker, every child in Ghana deserves education. In doing so, a lot of projects have gone on in this country to ensure that access to education which is already one in the basic schools, also becomes one in the secondary and tertiary schools.
Mr Speaker, the Free Senior High School (FSHS) Programme has transformed Ghana's education in the secondary sector and the future for the rest of our lives. In the next 10 years, we will all look back and say
Mr Speaker, the State of the Nation Address has two aspects 12:30 p.m.


to teachers with the initiative of the teachers unions. The teachers unions, realising that going forward, teachers would have to participate in blended education, came to Government with a lovely project - a laptop for every teacher. There are 280,000 teachers in pre-tertiary education who would benefit, and that is an exercise of leadership that even though there is a pandemic, we would not sit down and fold our arms. We would embrace the pandemic, and live our lives within the pandemic.

Mr Speaker, for the first time since independence, we have a compre- hensive teacher policy, and we heard the President talked about this action plan that would come to this House very soon. A comprehensive teacher policy will ensure that the teacher from training to teaching, continuing to professional development, is well catered for. That is why in the professional development, the Government has ensured that there is a professional teaching allowance being instituted for teachers, which has never existed before. The Professional teacher allowance is for every teacher, and it is something that is worth celebrating in this country. Licensing of teachers has been established and teacher unions support is on-going as well.

Mr Speaker, I would speak on energy as part of the Government's programme. The Energy Sector Recovery Programme informs us that by 2023, the energy sector debts would hit an amount of US$12.5 billion. It is not debt that started in President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's Government; but it is debt that has been accrued mainly because we signed up with different Independent Power Producers (IPPs), different companies, and different institutions to give us power when we were short of power in this country. It was done on emergency basis.

Mr Speaker, the lessons from it is that Ghana is being over charged. Yes, we were hot when we did it, and that is why the President talked about the renegotiation of these IPPs to ensure that we can have affordable pricing, so that Ghana can have electricity and power at the price that we can afford.

Mr Speaker, this, we would all have to support. This programme has many parts, so, if we do not support it, whether we like it or not, no matter the gains that we have achieved in the micro economy, the IPP pricing alone would destroy the economy of this country.

Mr Speaker, we all want affordable reliable power; power for all. The electricity penetration rate has reached

85 per cent, but the President promises 100 per cent. The 100 per cent would deal with electricity grid, the national grid and the off-grid projects.

Renewable energy would support those things for the Government to try and achieve energy and power for every Ghanaian. Without energy, there is no industrialisation, and without power, nothing can be done. We all would have to embrace the Government and make sure that when we are renegotiating with the IPPs, and when the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) comes up with the power tariff, it is done such that power becomes affordable for industrialisation in this country.

Mr Speaker, if we listened to what the President said, we are at a time in Ghana where the major political parties should come together to help propel the country forward.

I listened to my Hon Colleague, who said that Ghana has even collateralised our debts. The first collateralisation or securitisation was done with the Road Fund under the previous Government. Nobody said it was bad, and it is not true that we have collateralised or securitised 100 per cent of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund). We have

securitised 30 per cent of GETFund to ensure that waiting for 100 years to build the buildings, we can build the buildings now for Ghanaians to enjoy.

Mr Speaker, just like criticising the Free Senior High School Programme, I do not know any Hon Colleague here whose relative or friend is not benefiting from the Free Senior High School Programme. I have met Hon Colleagues, who had told me that because of the Free Senior High School Programme, their pockets are not being emptied as quickly as they used to be. Let us thank the Government for that and let us make sure that we put in process a programme, such that no Government ever -- I know that my Hon Colleagues on the other Side have threatened that when they come to power they would cancel the Free Senior High School Programme, but even today, looking at the request for placements that I have gotten from both Sides of the House, nobody intends cancelling the Free Senior High School Programme. We have to make it better, and also support H. E. the President for the good vision that he has implemented for four years. The results are fantastic, and the interventions are perfect to make sure that Ghanaians benefit.

Mr Speaker, when I talk of interventions, we did academic
rose MR FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:47 p.m.
Yes, Hon Member, under what Standing Order are you coming?
Mr Peter Nortsu-Kotoe 12:47 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon former Minister for Education said that mathematical sets were supplied. At the time of writing --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:47 p.m.
Hon Member, I asked you the Standing Order under which you come. That is the rule set by the Rt Hon Speaker, and I am just following it. [Interruption] --
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 12:47 p.m.
Mr Speaker, if we look at Standing Order 30 (f), which is on giving information, it reads: “Deliberate misleading of Parliament or any of its Committees”.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:47 p.m.
Hon Member, may I suggest that you start from Standing Order 91(a)? You would have to raise a point of order under Standing Order 91, and tell me which of the rules the Hon Member on his feet has breached.
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 12:47 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I come under Standing Order 91 (a), which reads: “By a point of order being raised.”
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:47 p.m.
Very well, so, what is the wrong being done?
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 12:47 p.m.
Mr Speaker, he mentioned that the Government provided mathematical sets at the time to the senior high school students, but I just would want to remind him that at the time of writing the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) last year, these mathematical sets were not available for use by the students. That is the correction that I would want to make.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:47 p.m.
Yes, Hon Minister, you may take that into consideration, so that we know the facts.
Dr Prempeh 12:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, 853,000 mathematical sets were ordered. Out of that figure, 414,000 plus has been delivered, and are shared amongst examination students. I thought that the Hon Member was going to say that he did not like the mathematical sets. This is because I was in a secondary school in his constituency, and I saw the students with the mathematical sets. I would want to bring his mind to it that one does not need the mathematical sets for only examinations. One needs the mathematical sets to be able to use it in mathematics and science.

So, the mathematical set is not only for examination. It is like the four figure table; it is not used the first time one is going to the examination hall. That is the point I was trying to make. It is for every student.

Previously, a Government was in power, and they supplied 10,000 sandals to schools around your area. It was a good programme. If you supply sandals to basic school pupils and you clap for it, maybe, we should jump for every student having a mathematical set. This is a responsible Government which is giving input to students to excel, and also exploring the economy of the country for the benefit of Ghanaians.

Mr Speaker, when the President talked about the Voltaian Basin, there has been exploration work going on there, and we would exploit the resources for the benefit of Ghanaians. That is something we should clap for. I know the Hon Member who is looking at me is excited that very soon, we would exploit the resources in the Voltaian Basin.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:50 p.m.
Hon Member, you are entitled to 15 minutes. Is that right? He was interrupted for two minutes. I am
Dr Prempeh 12:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, His Excellency the President has rallied Ghanaians, including all Hon Members, around issues that should lead to the prosperity of all Ghanaians. Let us support the President, his agenda and let us make sure that Ghana becomes better for all.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 12:50 p.m.
Hon Isaac Adongo.
Mr Isaac Adongo (NDC -- Bolgatanga Central) 12:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to contribute to the debate to thank His Excellency the President for the Message on the State of the Nation that was delivered to us yesterday.
Mr Speaker, as I sat and listened to His Excellency the President over the period of the Address, I was lost as to whether he was presenting the state of the nation or the future of the nation. I heard more about the future of the nation that he contemplated in four years, and less of the state that our economy and our country is at this point in time.
Mr Speaker, I realised that very key issues regarding our country were missing from his presentation. In paragraph 4 of page 3, His Excellency the President, when he attempted to indicate the state of our economy, gave us the targets that we had revised, but failed to tell us where we are with them at this moment in time. In my opinion, that ought to be the state of the country.
With your permission, I would like to read:
“Indeed, the cost of COVID- 19 has been enormous. Our overall economic growth rate for 2020 was revised downwards from 6 per cent to 0.9 per cent. The non-oil economy was also revised from 6.7 per cent to 1.6 per cent . Revenue shortfall was estimated at GH¢13.5 billion, with additional expenditures related to stemming the tide of COVID-19 estimated at GH¢11.8 billion, with the combined effect amounting to GH¢25.3 billion, or 6.6 per cent of GDP.”
Mr Speaker, everybody would have thought that he would tell us where we are now in respect of these indicators, but he said nothing. Even more worrying is the fact that when the President attempted indicating
some of the indicators that he thought we had achieved during his time, he fell short of telling us exactly what he has achieved in that period.
Mr Speaker, we are in the first quarter of 2021, but he gave us the state of the nation as at the first quarter of 2020. Mr Speaker, on the same page, paragraph 2, he says:
“Mr Speaker, between 2017 and the first quarter of 2020, we had made considerable gains in the management of the national economy, where we witnessed annual average GDP growth of seven per cent (7 per cent), single digit inflation, reduced fiscal deficits with three consecutive years of primary surpluses, a relatively stable exchange rate, a significant improvement in the current account with three consecutive years of trade surpluses …”
Mr Speaker, this cannot be far from the truth. If you look at the report that the Government of Ghana submitted to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to access the US$1 billion relief fund, our indicators were quite clear. We reported that in 2018, our GDP was 6.3 per cent; we reported that in 2019, our GDP grew by 6.1 per cent, and we indicated that
in 2020, we expect a GDP growth of 1.5 per cent.
Mr Speaker, no amount of mathematics would give you an average of 7 per cent of GDP growth from a figure of 6.3, 6.1 and 1.5 per cent. Yet, the President looked us in the face and said that he recorded an average GDP of 7 per cent. I do not know where that figure came from, and it is alien to the report of the Government that it has published internationally.
Mr Speaker, he also said that we have achieved less than 5 per cent overall deficit in the last three to four years. From the same report, we indicated that our deficit in 2018 was 7 per cent; our deficit in 2019 was 7.5 per cent and our deficit, as revised in 2020, is expected at 11.6 per cent. None of these show any deficit of below 5 per cent. As a matter of fact, the least that he had achieved from this data is 7 per cent, and that is nowhere near a minimum of 5 per cent or less that he has achieved.
Mr Speaker, our primary balance as reported to the IMF also shows that we had a -1.4 per cent in 2018; -1.8 per cent in 2019, and -4.1 per cent in 2020. Yet the President said that we have recorded primary balance surpluses consistently for
Mr Isaac Adongo (NDC -- Bolgatanga Central) 1 a.m.
three years. That is not supported by the facts and that is where I get very worried.
Mr Speaker, the President also talked about our net international reserves which had improved, and I do not see how a net international reserve that can support only two months would be seen as an improvement in the economy. Mr Speaker, the economy is in a very dire situation.
The President was at pain to explain that he was running a robust economy until the COVID-19 ravaged it. From the data I have just presented, it is quite clear that we were running an economy with underlying severe conditions that COVID-19 just exploited to kill. Just like COVID-19, people get it and they survive, but others get it and they die.
Our economy is in this stage because of the underlying conditions that we hid from the true state of our economy which was one that run unsustainable deficits, unsustainable GDP growth, unsustainable deficit in primary balance. All of these were clouded as positive developments and COVID-19, exploiting these underlying conditions, decided to now finish our economy. The earlier we realised that, the better.
Mr Speaker, His Excellency the President said that he would revive this economy by introducing what is called a GH¢100 billion ‘Obaatampa' Programme. In paragraph 1 on page 5, he said:
“Mr Speaker, the pandemic has exposed the need to expedite the process of moving Ghana to a situation beyond aid. That is why Government has developed and is currently implementing the (GH¢100 billion) Ghana CARES ‘Obaatanpa' Pro- gramme to transform, revitalise and modernise our economy …”
Mr Speaker, in 2020, His Excellency the President just spent GH¢108 billion, and he did not transform the economy with it in one year. How does that GH¢108 billion now spent over three years revive an economy like that?
Quite clearly, the GH¢100 billion is chicken feed for a Government that is used to spending GH¢100 billion in one year, and yet, we are told to have hope that this time around, that same GH¢100 billion that we spent in one year, when it is now spent over a period of three years, something meaningful would come out of it.
Mr Speaker, I have no hope that the GH¢100 billion ‘Obaatanpa'
Programme would deliver any success in turning around the economy.

Mr Speaker, the President spoke extensively on the digitisation of our economy and he said that Ghana has made monumental progress in formalising the economy and digitising Government services. There are very easy international standards for measuring digitisation and its impact on the delivery of Government services.

When you digitise and formalise the economy, such as computerising and improving courts service delivery; improving land administration and how people can acquire and register land; improving registration of vehicles at the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and the licensing regime; and improving the issuance of passports, it is very easy to determine the impact of those activities and to be able to tell whether there was success or not.

Mr Speaker, the World Bank has a very simple measure called the ease of doing business. When you computerise Government services, you reduce the bureaucracy and eliminate human intervention in their delivery which in turn --
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1 a.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Mr Addo 1 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I am trying to follow the Hon Member --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1 a.m.
Hon Member, please, let us be guided. Under what Standing Order are you coming?
Mr Addo 1 a.m.
Standing Order 91.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1 a.m.
And what is your complaint?
Mr Addo 1 a.m.
Mr Speaker, he should mention the specific areas such as the pages within the President's Address so that we can all follow.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1 a.m.
Hon Member, you can interrupt only if he has done something wrong.
Mr Addo 1 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I did not hear the President make those statements, so I would want to follow him and be convinced. We all have the Address, so he should indicate which page and then we would all follow.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1 a.m.
Hon Member, continue.
Minister for Communications and Digitalisation (Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful) 1:10 p.m.
Thank you Mr Speaker.
It is clear that the deliberate actions taken over the past four years have culminated in much improved state of the economy that we are all witnessing today. They all stood us in good stead when the pandemic unforeseenly struck and it shows how farsighted and visionary H. E. the President was in anticipating, preparing and responding to both the foreseen and unforeseen events.
Mr Speaker, we are indeed blessed that like David, the good Lord prepared and reserved H. E. the President of Ghana for a time such as this, to lead us out of the woods. When the pandemic struck, none of us were to know that the steps that had been taken in 2017 were what would literally save us.

We saw how the digital property address system enabled us to shelter at home during the lockdown and receive deliveries to our doorsteps when many people had to order and had goods delivered to their door

steps. We saw the growth of businesses such as online transportation services which many of our children and ourselves used - and to mention the uber services and others that have also considerably helped us to beat the times that we are in.

We saw how electronic payment systems facilitated by the mobile money interoperability system that we implemented with US$4 million when the previous government was in the process of implementing it for US$1 billion which we came and set aside and implemented a similar system for just US$4 million. It helped us to stop the transmission of the virus through cash and enabled us to transact businesses electronically through mobile money. Today, cheque payments have fallen far behind that of mobile money because more people use that as a means to transact business and it has helped us to weather the storm and span the growth of other ancillary businesses.

Many in this country who did not see what the President saw criticised the digital property address system and said we spent too much money - GH¢10 million to implement it. Today, it has proven its worth in gold and even more ancillary businesses have been derived from this platform that has been put in place.

Mr Speaker, we have seen that our students learnt electronically as the former Hon Minister for Education and the current Hon Member for Energy indicated in his presentation. It all took the visionary leadership of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to put in place the measures that have helped us to withstand the pandemic. Not only that, it enabled us to also see the realisation of the broad overarching vision of Ghana beyond aid - it helped us to dig deep within our own resources to become even self-reliant.

As the President indicated in his presentation yesterday, when we found it difficult to get PPE's across the world, Ghanaian entrepreneurs were able to develop and produce our own PPEs in this country which enabled our students to study safely when every student in the tertiary and secondary institutions and now the primary and junior high schools, were supplied with locally produced PPE's to enable us to withstand the pandemic.

At the onset of the pandemic, sanitizers became very scarce but we now produce them locally. This demonstrates that when it comes to the crunch, Ghanaians could fall on our resources, pull up our boot straps and under the right leadership and with

the provision of the right resources, deliver so that we could save ourselves. It took the visionary leadership of President Akufo-Addo, to make that happen.

Mr Speaker, that also lends credence to how systematic we are rolling out non-discriminatory development policies to benefit every Ghanaian living everywhere despite whichever the person's particular persuasion may be.

When it comes to Free SHS, nobody is asked to produce their political party card before they benefit. When it comes to Planting for Food and Jobs, every farmer benefits from that. When it comes to the digital initiatives, everybody benefits from that. So, we could continue to lament and look at the many challenges that still plagued us or we could count our blessings and say that we have indeed, been fortunate to live under the leadership of President Akufo-Addo, at a critical time such as this. Moreover, he has systematically showed that what is required is to take the bold decisions that would enable this country to withstand whatever challenges may be thrown at us.

Mr Speaker, at page 5 of the Message on the State of the Nation, the President indicated that the pandemic has exposed the need to expedite the process of moving us to
Minister for Communications and Digitalisation (Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful) 1:20 p.m.
a situation beyond aid and that is why we are developing the Ghana CARES “Obaatanpa'' programme. The medium term outlook supported by the implementation of this programme is bright and we are confident that together we would emerge from the pandemic with a stronger and more resilient economy.
Mr Speaker, when we look at the digital initiatives that were rolled out - and the Hon Member who spoke previously said that he does not see the benefit of digitisation but as the President said “if you do not open your eyes you would not see''. If a person is awake and he or she claims to be asleep, nobody can wake him or her up because that person would definatly be unable to wake up from his or her slumber.
Mr Speaker, with the institution and the implementation of the national identity card project, we stand on the brink of revolutionising the way we do things in this country. Many of us travel and we marvel at the way things work in other parts of the world. Ghana is well on the way to showing the way on the African continent that we could also do same here. Our national identification project was designed and it has being implemented and rolled out by local Ghanaian entrepreneurs and that is what excites
me that for such a comprehensive project, we are using locally grown talent and initiative to produce a world class infrastructure which is the envy of nations around the world, led by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Mr Speaker, it is not only with our national identification project but our digital address project was also designed and implemented by Ghanaians and the “ghana.gov payment'' platform, which enables citizens across the country to apply for and receive passports. Very soon, all other services provided by Ministries, Departments and Agencies would electronically be applied for and be paid for electronically - this would also be powered by Ghanaian firms.
Mr Speaker, this Government has demonstrated that government could use its purchasing power to grow the local innovations and technology landscape and we have three classic examples of world class interventions grown locally with local applications which has global impact as well. We have done it in this country and other nations have come to learn from us and they have seen how this -- mobile money interoperability, digital address systems, and the national identification systems have formed the foundation of the economy which has formalised,
robust and is resilient enough to withstand whatever may come our way and yet, others say they do not see it.

Mr Speaker, it is not surprising that now we could sit in the comfort of our homes and order and receive items remotely without moving and we pay for them electronically. This has reduced the insecurity on our roads - when the market women could even sell their products online, receive payments electronically, deliver them remotely and the person who ordered it will receive it in the comfort of his/ her home and everybody is satisfied through the wonders of technology being facilitated by the visionary leadership of our President who sees far beyond what so many of us cannot see.

It is even more surprising because he was born before the invention of computers and so, even those of us who were born within this technological age are learning a lot from him.

Mr Speaker, the statistics provided on page 12 is ongoing based on the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and that also showed us that after four years in Office, more progress has been made in formalising our

economy than in the previous 60 years since Independence and the evidence is clear.

We are not wasting the pandemic but we are using the lessons learnt from it to build back more resilient systems to give effect to the overarching vision of a Ghana Beyond Aid. When global supply chains fail us, we will not even wait but we will produce what we need to use locally, using our own home grown talent to be self-reliant, and we are on course to do just that.

Mr Speaker, it is not surprising that Ghana is the fastest growing mobile money market in Africa, and we are the first to introduce investor QR codes for payments across banks, telecommunication companies, SIM texts, and all merchants, and this is propelling us to be the first on the continent to move towards a largely cashless economy when it is fully rolled out across the country in the course of this year. All of that would need robust digital infrastructure to enable that work seamlessly across the country.

Online education is on course with the opening of universities and Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) across schools and the many digital platforms have been established for that to happen. On course is the e-health and
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:20 p.m.
Hon Minister, you have one more minute.
Mrs Owusu-Ekuful 1:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the rural telephony project is on course and by the middle of next year, every part of this country will be connected. Now, we are even going to ensure working together with the Ministry of Energy that everywhere there is an electricity line, we will utilise it to provide backbone fibre broadband access so that we will have high speed connectivity across the country. We have His Excellency the President to thank for this vision of a fully connected Ghana, digitised, focused which has taken its place amongst the comity of nations and shows the way as the black star of Africa. We are on course to do just that.
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:20 p.m.
Hon Member, I have not even recognised you but you are already on your feet. Yes, Hon John Jinapor?
Mr John Jinapor (NDC -- Yapei/Kusawgu) 1:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, it is because of the telepathy between myself and you. Sometimes, even before you mention my name, your smile alone tells me that you are about to call me.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:20 p.m.
However, even if I was smiling, you would not see it --
Mr J. Jinapor 1:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am the only person who can see through your mask.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:20 p.m.
Your time is running, please proceed.
Mr J. Jinapor 1:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am very grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Message on the State of the Nation as presented by His Excellency, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Mr Speaker, yesterday was indeed a very sobering moment because I do recalled that in the year 2017 when the President addressed us here it was his maiden Message on the State of the Nation. He did not mince words but stated clearly that he was in a hurry and; indeed, based on the actions that followed, one could, at least, see a sense of eagerness.
However, yesterday, after listening to the President, I could only come to one conclusion that he has hit the ground crawling. It is obvious that this Government is tired. I do recalled that following the 2017 SONA, I had the opportunity to contribute to the debate and on that faithful day, I made a bold declaration that on the 7th of January, 2021, those on the Minority side, will sit at the Majority side. That came to pass except that I forgot to add that we will sit there for four years.
Mr Speaker, so, on this date, Wednesday, 10th March, 2021, once again, by the will of the Almighty God, I wish to declare again that in four years' time, we will be there for eight years as the Majority side. I know that by the grace of God, it shall come to pass.
When the President addressed us, all he had to do was to be candid and tell us the true state of the nation. In the year 2017, he was bold to tell us that he had inherited a debt of US$122billion even though we dispute that.
The President stated that 99 per cent of our total revenue covered only three items; salaries, interest and amortisation and then statutory payments.
Mr Speaker, the President gave us a declaration and commitment that he was determined to correct that anomaly within four years. Just before we rose, we approved the Appropriation for the first three months of the year and if we look at page 21 of the Budget Statement that we approved, interest payment and amortisation amounts to GH¢10billion. However, with our total revenue, tax revenue alone amounts to GH¢10billion.
What this means is that all the money accrued from the collection of our taxes is used to service our debts in terms of payment of interest and amortisation. Even when we take a look at our total revenue for these three months, it is GH¢13billion and so, when we take just two items, that is, interest on amortisation and then compensation which is GH¢7billion, it means that out of the GH¢13billion, we ought to be paying GH¢17billion. So, this tells us that there is a huge deficit.
Mr Speaker, from the total appropriation of GH¢27billion, our total revenue for that period is GH¢13billion. When we strike the difference, it means that there is a deficit of GH¢14billion --
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Mr Kwarteng 1:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Member is in breach of Standing Order 93(4). It states: ‘‘The speech of a Member must have reference to the subject matter under discussion”.
The subject matter here is the state of the nation. We are not here to debate economic policies or the Budget. The Budget will be presented on Friday.
Mr Speaker, thank you.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:30 p.m.
Hon Member, speak to the --
Mr J. Jinapor 1:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the President spoke about the economy and he said that he inherited a difficult economy and he has done so well and the economy is now healthy. I disagree with the President and stated that the statement made by the President is false and also stated that in 2017 he said that 99 per cent of total revenue captures three items, but today, even as he is blowing his trumpet, our total revenue cannot even cover two items.
Mr Speaker, the only way I can substantiate that is to refer to the primary document which is the
Budget Statement and it is a public document before us. Mr Speaker, so I do not get the drift of my Hon Friend at all because this is normal in the House and when we are debating and quoting figures, Mr Speaker would always insist that the source of the figures ought to be backed with evidence. Mr Speaker, that is exactly what I am doing.
Mr Speaker, therefore, it is clear that the President inherited a healthy, better financed and better managed economy and he is bequeathing to himself an economy that is really suffering and in a state of comatose. There is no doubt about this and the figures speak to the facts.
Mr Speaker, the President also said that in his second term he would ensure that we have universal access to electricity. When the President took over, the NDC Government had extended access to electricity from about 50 per cent to 83 per cent. This is our record. In the four years that the President was at the helm of affairs, we have moved access from 83 per cent to 85 per cent and this means that every year the President achieves an access rate of 0.5 per cent. If in four years, the access rate is 0.5 per cent, how can we achieve and close the gap of 15 per cent in another four years?
Mr Speaker, it is obvious that the President has failed when it comes to access to electricity. More disturbing is that sometime in April, last year, the President boldly told the entire nation that he has realised that health infrastructure was so important and that he had Agenda 88, and within one year he would ensure that this Agenda 88, which has now transmogrified into Agenda 111 would be delivered. We are in March now so almost one year down the lane, not even a spoonful of cement, concreate or mortar has been laid on the ground.
Mr Speaker, in April, this same President promised us that the Pwalugu Dam would commence in April 2020. In fact, the President visited the place and there was pomp and pageantry. The Pwalugu Dam is in the document and when he delivered the Address he quoted from this document. Mr Speaker, it has been one year since and I have been to the Pwalugu Dam and not even one wheelbarrow can be found there. The only thing I found there was a huge signboard well decorated with a picture of the President.
Mr Speaker, Hon Eric Opoku talked about food imports and if you read the IMF documents on Ghana, food as a percentage of total merchandise in 2016 was 14 per cent, however, the latest figure in 2019 is about 20 per cent.
Mr Speaker, he takes over an import of 14 per cent, fails abysmally
and gets it to about 20 per cent yet the President tells us that we no longer import food items. Mr Speaker, this is the IMF document and it is clear that the President inherited a better financed economy but today we are having a major challenge with the economy.
If we ask Hon Members of Parliament, today, there are so many complaints about dumsor and persistent erratic supply of energy across the country. Have we not experienced this? Do we not have light outs on a daily basis? Mr Speaker, we handed over a resilient energy sector and I just heard the Hon Minister for Energy indicate that in 2023, there would be some US$12 billion of debt because of excess capacity. I can understand that he is new and so we would help him to walk through the rudiments.
Mr Speaker, we would educate him on the energy sector and if he cares to know, he should read the 2020 Electricity Supply for Ghana from the Ghana Grid Company Limited. This is an official document and I refer to it that the medium-term demand supply shows that there is adequate generation to meet demand for the period of 2021 -- however, an additional 480 Megawatts would be required commencing 2024.

Mr Speaker, this is an official document that by 2023 -- [Interruption]. Mr Speaker, he is being disruptive. He does not understand because probably he has not engaged us in a debate. My duty is to respond to fellow Hon Members who raise issues and Mr Speaker knows that I am entitled to not just responding to an issue raised by an Hon Colleague but responding with facts and figures.

Mr Speaker, the President was very quick to talk about a so-called One District One Factory (1D1F) Programme, but it is the end that justifies the means. What is the results with this so-called 1D1F? I refer to the Manufacturing Sector on page 21 Table 4 of the 2020 Budget Statement.

In 2016, the growth rate was 7.9 per cent under President Mahama but today the growth rate is 6.5 per cent. That is a huge decline. The construction sector in 2016 had a growth rate of 8.4 per cent but today the sector is -8.5 per cent. Mr

Speaker, if this is not a failure or abysmal performance then what else is it?

Mr Speaker, the President said that the Zongo Development Fund under the Ministry of Special Development Initiatives has done so well such that he has decided to collapse the Ministry. The irony is that they have done so well and their performance is unprecedented so the only way to reward them is to collapse the Ministry and bring them under his Presidency. Mr Speaker, the only thing I remember that the Zongo Development Fund did when I was an Hon Member of Parliament was that they went to Nima to teach the women how to prepare waakye and this was published. If it was about the preparation of Waakye then my grandmother is an expert in the preparation of waakye.

Mr Speaker, clearly, the Ghanaian has been impoverished. The Electricity Company of Ghana was a profit making entity before we handed over. Today, their debt has risen from 2 billion --
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Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Mr Boamah 1:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, I beg to
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Very well, but he is not out of order.
Hon Member, you have less than one minute. Kindly conclude.
Mr J. Jinapor 1:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, I was shocked to the marrow when His Excellency the President looked into our faces and told us that the Agyapa Royalties deal was coming back to this House. Without equivocation, let me state that this Agyapa Royalties deal should be considered dead on arrival. We would not be part of that Agyapa Royalties deal today, tomorrow or another day.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, this Agyapa deal should be considered
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Hon Member for Sekondi, Hon Egyapa Mercer?
Mr Andrew K. E. Mercer (NPP -- Sekondi) 1:40 a.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion that was ably moved by the Hon Member of Parliament for Okaikwei Central, Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah, that this honourable House thanks His Excellency the President for the Message on the State of the Nation which he delivered to Parliament on Tuesday, 9th March, 2021.
Mr Speaker, before I even proceed to deal with the substantive matter that I intend to address, my colleague, the Hon Member of Parliament of Yapei/Kusawgu, sought to contradict the Hon Minister for Energy on the figures that he put out relative to the energy sector shortfalls.
Mr Speaker, I have in my hand the Energy Sector Recovery Programme, which indicates clearly in Table 2 the power sector cut flow summary from 2018 through to 2023. Mr Speaker, it says that the 2018 arrears is
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Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Mr Edward A. Bawah 1:40 a.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, thank you very much. I come under Order 92(1). I hope the Order is correct? Standing Order 92(1) (a) says that:
“No member shall interrupt any other Member except --
(a)by rising to a point of order, that is, where any of these Orders is alleged to have been infringed, whereupon the Member speaking shall resume his seat and the Member interrupting shall simply direct attention to the point which he desires to bring to notice and submit it to Mr Speaker for decision; or”
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Hon Member, now tell me what he has done wrong.
Mr Bawa 1:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, in the document the Hon Member is quoting, the Energy Sector Recovery Report that was authored in January, 2019, the US$12.5 billion projected includes the -
Mr First Deputy Speaker 1:40 a.m.
Hon Member, you would want to make a contribution. When it gets to your turn, you can make your contribution.
Please, Hon Member, continue.
Mr Mercer 1:40 a.m.
Mr Speaker, indeed, I have a World Bank document which outlines the Annual Power Sector and the Annual Gas Sector shortfalls in the energy sector and the accumulations, and the reasons that are attributable by the World Bank for the mess that we are really experiencing. It says that:
“The main reasons for the revenue shortfalls are as follows: high generation cost; expensive negotiated power purchase agreements between ECG and IPPs; excess power capacity and gas oversupply; and dixcove operational high inefficiency losses and no tariffs”.
So Mr Speaker, it cannot be again said that the reason for the shortfalls
that we are encountering as a nation is a result of the factors that are outlined in the document that I just made available to this House.
Indeed, Mr Speaker, if you look at this same World Bank documents and look at the peak demand and the installed capacity pre-2015 and post- 2015, nobody would convince me that all the capacities that were contracted between 2015 till date have really not been consumed. It means we are paying for power that we do not need. This is a matter of fact. I challenge my colleagues on the other Side to bring contrary figures to challenge the ones that I have put out before this House.
Mr Speaker, indeed, yesterday was a great day. His Excellency the President appeared before the august House of Parliament in accordance with his constitutional mandate and delivered the State of the Nation Address. He touched on key sectors of the economy and indicated in his conclusions that, indeed, the State of our economy is strong.
Mr Speaker, His Excellency the President touched on the economy and the impact of COVID-19 on our fortunes and clearly outlined the measures that his Government was taking to ensure through the Ghana CARES (Obaatanpa) Programme to
take Ghana out of the impact of COVID-19 and to put our economy back on rebound. He mentioned education, digitisation, agriculture and several other areas that policies were being implemented to ensure that Ghana gets out of the doldrums that we find ourselves in.
Mr Speaker, indeed, nobody can deny that COVID-19 really has impacted our economy significantly because if we look at the economic trajectory between 2017 and 2019, Ghana was on the rise. All the economic indicators point to an economy that had been transformed from where it was that His Excellency the President has inherited in 2017. And clearly, we were on the path of becoming an Upper Middle Income Economy in accordance with the vision of the Ghana beyond Aid until COVID-19 struck. COVID-19 has impacted the entire globe, and Ghana cannot be an exception.
Indeed, Mr Speaker, yesterday, what struck me was a profound commitment that His Excellency the President made, relative to the engagements going forward of this House on what he intends to do with Agyapa Royalties Limited. Mr Speaker, indeed, at page 15 of the Address, His Excellency the President said, with your kind permission which I may quote:
Mr Mercer 1:50 p.m.
“Mr Speaker, let me at this point assure the House that in the course of this session of Parliament, Government would come back to engage the House on the steps it intends to take on the future of the Agyapa transaction.”
Mr Speaker, the keyword is “engage”. I was struck because, indeed, every Hon Member here would recall that post the approval of the Agyapa transaction by this House in August 2020, there was a lot of brouhaha in the public space.

Indeed, it took centre stage in the elections to the point that the Special Prosecutor conducted what he called a corruption risk assessment and issued a report. Post that, His Excellency the President then suspended the transaction and directed the Minister for Finance to submit the document to Parliament for further review. People suggested at the time that he was only doing so because he wanted the political season to be over and then not come back.

Clearly, the people of Ghana having renewed his mandate, clearly having won, having had prior Parliamentary approval, I dare say that His

Excellency the President is not under any obligation to resubmit or re- engage Parliament on the Agyapa transaction. Obviously, he is a man of his words. He did not want the people of Ghana to think that he said the things that he said purely on account of politics. So consistent with his nature, after the elections, at his first State of the Nation's Address, he has come to Parliament to inform the people of Ghana, through their representatives, that he intends to engage Parliament on the Agyapa Royalties transaction going forward.

Mr Speaker, that clearly demonstrates that the President is a Leader of conviction and that we should commend him for the decision to come before this House to reengage Parliament on the Agyapa transaction.

Mr Speaker, I have heard my Hon Colleagues from the other side clearly suggest that they are not going to support the Agyapa Royalties transaction. Indeed, the Agyapa Royalties transaction was never new. As far back as 2017, in the 2018 Budget, we were apprised by the Minister for Finance of what he intended doing with our mineral royalties going forward. Indeed, in the Budget Statement of 2018, he indicated that appropriately, he would come before this House with legislation to that effect.

Mr Speaker, true to form, in 2018, this House passed the Minerals Income Investment Fund Act of 2018 (Act 978). Mr Speaker, with your permission, may I read sections 2 and 3 of the Minerals Income Investment Fund Act:

“The objects of the Fund are to:

(a)Maximise the value of the income due the Republic from the mineral wealth of the country for the benefit of its citizens.

(b)Monetise the minerals income accruing to the Republic in a beneficial, responsible, transparent, accountable and sustainable manner.

(c)Develop and implement measures to reduce the budgetary exposure of the republic to the minerals income fluctuations.
Mr Speaker, it is instructive. Section 3 says 1:50 p.m.
“The Fund may create and hold equity interest in a special purpose vehicle in any jurisdiction in furtherance of its objects and the special purpose vehicle shall be free to operate
as a regular commercial company.”
Mr Speaker, this is the law that this House passed. Indeed, in the 2019 Budget, the Minister for Finance proceeded to inform this House in paragraph 217 about the Partial Securitisation of the Mineral Royalties in black and white and stated what it was that Government intended to do, pursuant to the passage of the Act. Yet, after the approval in 2020, August, Ghanaians were made to believe that this transaction was shrouded in some secrecy that the President together with his family members were seeking to appropriate the assets of this country for their personal benefit. Was that the truth?
Mr Speaker, if the securitisation of our mineral royalties was wrong, one would wonder what informed the decision by the NDC Government in 2011 to embark on a similar project. They failed. So when another government comes and deploys industry to ensure that the policy that we as political actors are well ad idem as regards its implementation. What was the purpose of all the accusations that were thrown at people in Government otherwise than for political purposes?
So, Mr Speaker, I am particularly excited that His Excellency the
Mr Emmanuel A. Buah (NDC -- Ellembele) 1:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity.
Mr Speaker, there is one statement that I agree on with the President. In a paragraph, he congratulated the Rt Hon Speaker and highlighted his long and honourable service to the country.
I also agree with the President when he stated that in the face of the global pandemic that has ravaged lives and livelihood in all parts of the world; we cannot afford to pursue an interest that would leave our nation and citizens poorer. Mr Speaker, that was a profound statement and I think that for starters, the President must show commitment to that statement by re-
Mr Speaker, on page 3, paragraph 2, the President said 1:50 p.m.
“This survey, again, showed that about seven hundred and seventy thousand (770,000) workers had their wages reduced, and about forty-two thousand (42,000) employees were laid off during the three- week partial lockdown imposed on the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Areas and their contiguous districts, Tema and Kasoa. Government however, succeeded succeeded in protecting the jobs and incomes of all public sector workers.”
Mr Speaker, the point here is that the President was admitting the impact of COVID-19 and how especially the private sector has been struggling. What we did not see was a clear direction, a clear strategy, a stimulus plan to really save the private sector. The President was very proud in talking about how Government has succeeded in protecting jobs and incomes of public sector workers.
Mr Speaker, what is the percentage of public sector workers? The business of Government is to
create the enabling environment for the private sector to create jobs. But we know that as we speak today -- it is two weeks now as we heard about the increase in taxes and the challenges of simply doing business in Ghana. What is Government doing in these critical times to really lower taxes and make it easy? Let us see how we are doing on the ease of doing business. Ghana's position on the world corruption index, are we improving or we are getting worse? Are we encouraging people to invest in our country? These are very critical. If we want to create jobs for the teeming youth, this is what to do.
The Government talked about a very grandiose programme called Obaatanpa Cares. Mr Speaker, I went through that but it is another bloated Government bureaucracy and by the time we implement that, I am sure a lot of private jobs would have collapsed as they have already.
Mr Speaker, my disappointment was on the President's position and the plan on the African Continental Free Trade. He touted the effort of Ghana as the headquarters of AfCFTA. It is very important and let me be very clear. If we want to give credit, we start from President Atta- Mills down to President Mahama -- great achievement but that is not enough. The African Continental Free
Trade is a great opportunity for Ghana to lead. It is important because that is where our liberation is -- our real economic independence and I would give you some numbers.
In 2019, the total volume of trade in Africa was US$460 billion, only US$69 billion was transacted among African countries. We expected the President to give us strategy on how Ghana can lead that effort in taking advantage of AfCFTA. Most of the imports that are traded in Africa are things that we can produce and the President acknowledged that. What are we doing to add value and to reach the 1.3 billion customers on the continent?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Hon Members, having regard to the state of the Business of the House, I direct that the House Sits outside the regular Sitting hours.
Mr Buah 2 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we wanted the President to emphasise the hurdles that we face as a country. How are we competing, for example with Rwanda in terms of communication infrastructure? Why is
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Member?
Ms Prempeh 2 p.m.
Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague on the other Side is misleading the House. He just asked a question that -- [Interruption] -- Order 91(a). I would want to tell him that I have seen a new 1D1F in my constituency; a brick and tile factory at Tanoso. So, that disputes the fact that there is no factory built anywhere.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2 p.m.
Hon Member for Tano North, kindly resume your seat. When you get the opportunity, you will tell us what you have in your constituency.
Hon Member, please continue.
Mr Buah 2 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the President talked of the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Programme. It is very important. It must be looked at in a bigger context. We must do that taking the world with us. We already have issues and questions that have been raised about rural forest.
I think it is important that we address those issues before -- As we speak, the world's biggest miners of bauxite have already indicated that they will not be part of an illegality. It is important that Ghana takes steps that will carry them with us. Other than that, these grandiose ideas about bauxite and mining of alumina will not succeed.
Mr Speaker, on energy, on Thursday, 21st of February, 2019, the President was in this House and he spoke at length about oil discovery. In some ways, he boasted, Mr Speaker, with your permission, I would like to quote him:
“There has been good news with the recent announcement by Aker Energy of one of the biggest oil finds in Africa. This has led me to think that the NPP Government must be good for Ghana.”
Mr Speaker, this was followed by a writ to this House to amend previous agreements and processes to reduce Ghana's stake in the AGL and we did from 43 per cent to 18 per cent. We even went ahead to amend on Aker's Agreement where we reduced the power of the Petroleum Commission and even reduced the powers of the Minister responsible for Energy.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2 p.m.
We would move on to the Hon Member for Bosomtwe, the Hon Dr Adutwum. [Hear! Hear!]
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:20 p.m.
We would move on to the Hon Dr Kwabena Donkor, the Hon Member for Pru East.
Dr Kwabena Donkor (NDC-- Pru East) 2:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the State of the Nation Address.
Mr Speaker, I would want to recognise the President's position on page 17 where he said that they are paying up all energy sector debts. That is a good observation, but paying off
energy sector debts did not begin with the Administration of His Excellency the President, and it will not end with it.
What His Excellency the President omitted was to indicate the vehicle being used to pay the energy sector legacy debt which is the Energy Sector Levy Act (ESLA) and this House passed that law in 2016. Therefore, if the President wants to take the credit for paying off the debt, the minimum he could do was to, at least, mention the vehicle to be used. It is not just a consolidated account expenditure. This is revenue purposely set aside to pay this legacy debt, and I wish the President had been more candid.
He also stated that by paying off energy sector debt, among others, there would be affordability of power in the country. Mr Speaker, affordability connotes the ability of the citizenry to pay their power bills without sweat. Affordability is not just a function of price; it is also a function of income. If aggregate incomes stagnate, if they decline, then the ability to pay power tariffs is compromised. Therefore, if we want to improve the ability of people to pay, then we must work on improving incomes. It is a two-sided equation; it is not just a function of price.
Affordability would also be determined by the stability of the currency. Indeed, 70 to 80 per cent of payables of the power sector is dollar denominated whereas over 90 per cent of the receivables is Ghana cedi denominated. Therefore, any disequilibrium between the two impacts on the ability of the energy sector to be sustainable and consequently, the ability of the sector to pass down competitive prices.
Mr Speaker, a former Minister for Energy, Dr Joe Oteng-Adjei, once said that we did not have an energy problem in Ghana; we have a finance problem. Finance is at the root of all the power problems that we have in this country, and we must recognise that. We should also concentrate on working on the stability of the currency. No matter how much subsidies we build into our pricing, if our currency stability situation is not arrested, those subsidies would create more debts.
Mr Speaker, to promote affordability, we must also be innovative in our approaches. As we speak, if any serious country wants to improve efficiency, the first thing to look at is the efficiency of the plant. I hoped to hear from the President some plans to turn the Kpone thermal plant into a combined cycle plant to reduce the average cost of generation.
Dr Kwabena Donkor (NDC-- Pru East) 2:30 p.m.
The heat recovery unit does not use fuel. Currently, the 220 megawatts Kpone thermal plant operates a simple cycle plant. The drive to improve efficiency must start from the technical perspective.
Mr Speaker, in the same Tema corridor, we have the CENIT Energy Limited plant and another Volta River Authority (VRA) plant, each with a capacity of 110 megawatts sitting in the same compound and yet operating two simple cycle plants. Where is the plan to turn this into a combined cycle plant? For those who might be new to the sector, Takoradi Power Company Limited (TAPCO) in Takoradi was a simple cycle plant. We have turned TAPCO into a combined cycle by adding the heat recovery unit and increasing generating capacity from 220 to 330 megawatts using no extra fuel.
Again, Takoradi International Company Limited (TICO), also in Takoradi, was a 220 megawatts GE frame plant. We turned that into a combined cycle from 220 to 330 megawatts. That is efficiency, and reducing the cost of generation because the third unit would not use fuel. It just uses the exhaust heat of the two units. If we talk about
affordable power, I would want to see us throw away the propaganda rhetoric and look at technical solutions within our grip. These are low hanging fruits.
Mr Speaker, we must also become innovative in our approaches to finance in the energy sector. When this House approved the Ameri Project, there was hue and cry borne largely out of misunderstanding. Five years now, this country owns a plant that has 20 years of useful life left at no cost to the country because by using the BOT approach, we had paid upfront through tariffs without having to go and borrow money and without encumbering the State's balance sheet; and today, we have a plant. That is not the only innovating approach that could be used; it is an example of innovation that has to become a driving force of this country.
Mr Speaker, I have also read in the President's Address about liquefied natural gas plant, that a liquefied natural gas plant in Tema will come on stream. Mr Speaker, in 2015 this House approved a short term liquefied natural gas plant for five years. It was for a short term of five years because at that time, we identified a gap in the supply chain with us, and we had become too dependent on the West African Gas
pipeline from Nigeria which was extremely reliable for its unreliability. Therefore, there was this short --
Today, we have more than one gas field and indeed, an Hon Colleague from the other Side, Hon Egyapa Mercer quoted a document that I had not sighted, saying that we have an oversupply of gas. That is one of the causes of the energy sector debt. If we have an oversupply of gas, why bring in more expensive long-term liquefied natural gas facility? What is the justification particularly when a second one is being planned? These are questions that we should ask ourselves.

Mr Speaker, we had the opportunity and this has been on the drawing board from about 2015- 2016 to have an independent second pipeline with dual flow capability, serving the eastern and western corridors of this country.

Mr Speaker, that pipeline which should be owned by the sovereign people of Ghana will give us the leverage to set up industrial drills along the coastlines. It would have dual flow capabilities and it would give us security for the two corridors of our power industry.

Mr Speaker, I would want to end by touching on the Voltaian Basin. The President mentioned work on the Voltaian Basin. It is extremely good to, at least, explore all our basins but we should not be in a rush to move onto the Voltaian Basin. Every single oil producing country in our sub-region that has had problems with oil production, especially problems of human security, emanated from onshore exploration. So, there is a lot of careful work and consultations that we would need to do.

There is a long way to go. How do we mitigate the possible negative impact of onshore production where human settlements would struggle due to oil exploration, where the question of local would become critical? Fortunately, presently, we are offshore. In the offshore regime, the challenges are minimal when compared to the onshore challenges.

So, I would have been happy if my President had stated that some national consensus is being built, some team is working or would be working on the steps needed to minimise any social, economic and ethnic disturbances that could arise out of the Voltaian basin exploration.

Mr Speaker, the energy sector is such a critical motor for socio- industrial development but issues of the sector should move beyond
Mr Habib Iddrisu (NPP -- Tolon) 2:40 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you. I rise to contribute on the State of the Nation Address presented by H. E. the President of the Republic of Ghana. I would want to thank the President for his vivid picture on the current state of the nation. It could not have been better than what was presented.
The MP for Yapei-Kusawgu was struggling to justify that there is dumsor in the country. National electrification scheme has actually worked and access to electricity in the various communities in Ghana has risen to about 85 per cent. It is the hope of this Government that by 2025, we should be able to have 100 per cent of communities connected to electricity.
It is not just the access but also about the stable connectivity. This is not the kind of dumsor we used to have previously where factories were collapsing, people were losing their jobs and where electrical appliances were damaged as a result of unstable electricity.
Mr Speaker, if you look at the presentation the President made on the state of the nation, he mentioned that under the then Ministry of Special Initiatives Development led by Hon Hawa Koomson who is currently the Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture, the One Village One Dam project, for instance, we were able to have about 427 dams. This has actually helped, especially looking at parts of the Northern Region.
These are trying and difficult moments for farmers and the people of the Northern Region and these dams could not have come at a better time than when the President and the NPP Government have been able to do them. The Tamale Water Project - as the President stated in paragraph 17 of the State of the Nation Address, we would be very glad if, at least, concrete works get started. This would cover part of Tamale and extend to my constituency which is the Tolon constituency and then to the Kumbungu constituency and to other parts of the Region.
Mr Speaker, I would want to also commend the President for actually stating clearly, the current state of the nation. If you look at paragraph 3 of the Address which with your permission, I beg to quote:
“Let me use this opportunity to congratulate, once again, the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, on becoming Speaker of the 8th Parliament. He has a distinguished career, having entered the 1st Parliament of the 4th Republic in 1993, and I came to meet him in the 2nd Parliament in 1997. He has been Majority Leader, Minister of State, one of the “three wisemen”…”

Mr Speaker, the current Minister for Youth and Sports, Hon Mustapha Ussif has started as one of the best or luckiest Ministers for Youth and Sports. On Sunday, the Black Satellites were able to win the Under 20 World Cup for the fourth time for this country. This is a good initiative.

In 2018, Ghana won the bid to host the African Games for 2023. The Government is working with the Local Oganising Committee (LOC) to ensure that the tournament becomes a success. It would create jobs and opportunities in the country and we would be able to move forward.

Mr Speaker, if you look at paragraph 19 of the State of the Nation Address, the President talked about the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) initiative. We are in difficult times with the COVID-19 situation, yet access to LEAP has actually widened and I want to commend the President for the good work being done.

The Address could not be more than what the President presented. Looking at the security sector such as the Police Service, they were crying under the previous National Democratic Congress's (NDC) Administration. At the moment we could see that they have been given new pickups, helicopters and a lot of equipment. Some of the CID's have been motivated with some form of allowances to encourage them do more for the country. The military have
Mr Edward Abambire Bawa (NDC -- Bongo) 2:40 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you very much for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion.
Mr Speaker, it is important to state that when a President fulfils a constitutional requirement by telling Ghanaians through Parliament the state of the nation, it is important that he captures every facet of the nation and how it affects them directly.
Mr Speaker, it would be realised that surprisingly, apart from page 25 of the Message on the State of the Nation, where the President just gave a hint on issues of governance and how certain moneys had been allocated to anti-corruption agencies, nothing seriously was said about the
issue of corruption. To be able to appreciate a government, it is important to realise that in 2017, 2018 and 2019, the Centre for Democratic Development's (CDD's) corruption watch reported that Ghana lost GH¢9.6 billion to corruption. The total bill on the average for SHS in Ghana is GH¢1.2 billion annually and this indicates that for three years, what we have lost through corruption could fund SHS for eight solid years. So, for the President not to have given a hint on how to deal with corruption was to a large extent very disappointing.
Mr Speaker, this is not surprising because it could be recalled that “Transparency International” decided to publish what is called the “corruption perception index'' and Ghana placed the 75th position. The reason they gave was that the Government was not transparent in the usage of the COVID-19 funds. It is the very indication -- and it is an area that the President would definitely stay away from.
However, it is important to also note that just about three days ago, the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors launched a report which stated that in 2019, Ghana lost US$1.9 billion as a result of tax evasion. They prescribed certain reasons why we lost such an amount of money in terms of revenue Collection and they zeroed it down on a particular scheme that is known
as “petroleum product macro scheme''. This scheme was launched in 2012 under the John Mahama- Mills administration and it was in response to the fact that we had so much petroleum smuggling in our system.
We had a lot of dumping of petroleum products in our system and to a very large extent, we had adulterated products at our retail stations which constituted a threat not only to the environment but even to our -- So, as part of the scheme, usually a chemical is dropped into the petroleum products and sent to the retail shops. For example, if the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) were supposed to check from station “A” if the product that has been sold has been taxed, one of the things they looked out for is whether it has been marked.
Anytime it is marked, it ascertains that the quality could be guaranteed, and secondly, that the product has been taxed. Most of the Sahelian countries pick their products from Ghana but those products are not taxed in Ghana and the truth of the matter is that these products come under the guise of being sent to the Sahelian countries but at the end of the day, they end up in our retail stations where we buy fuel from.
Obviously, these are products that would not be taxed, so if NPA were to check on them they would realise that they have not been marked. It is because of these two issues that we have not collected up to about the US$1.9 billion; but that is not where the story is juicy.
The report further identifies the people who are involved in this cartel and we would be surprised to hear that apart from the officials of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) who have been mentioned, the National Security and officials from the presidency were also mentioned.
Mr Speaker, it is understandable that the President after talking for two and a half hours in a 26-page report, told us that there are resourced anti- corruption agencies, but we know that budgeting for an agency is different from releasing the actual amount to them.
Mr Speaker, the next issue I would want to talk about is my dis- appointment in the President's talk about the legacy debt. I wonder whether his speech writers were those who put it in the speech because as of the time he presented the Message on the State of the Nation no Hon Member had the document. When he spoke and turned to his left side and pointed and said “we have paid the
Mr Edward Abambire Bawa (NDC -- Bongo) 2:50 p.m.
legacy debt that you left behind”, I realised that it was either his speech writers had misled him or he was being “disingenuous”.
Mr Speaker, there is reason why it is called “legacy debts”. It is called “legacy debts” because they are debts that have been accumulated over governments and when in 2015 the NDC Government realised that this was becoming a burden for successive governments, there was a need to put a full stop to it.
The “legacy debts” was re-fenced and we took a decision as a country that we would levy ourselves, so we passed the Energy Sector Levy Act, of 2015 (Act 899) which gave the State five solid years to tax Ghanaians anytime we bought petroleum products to retire the US$2.4 billion debt. The assumption was also that within that particular period, subsequent liabilities that came along were supposed to be settled on time whiles we dealt with the US$2.4 billion.

I do know and everyone will remember that in 2016 the NPP Government was describing the then President as heartless, someone who did not feel for the common Ghanaian from rooftops.

Mr Speaker, moving forward, today, we all do know that the period in which we were supposed to collect these taxes, the NPP came. They did not abolish the ESLA; what they did was to increase the tenure to 10 years.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Hon Member, you have one more minute.
Mr Bawa 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thought I had 15 minutes.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Hon Member, unfortunately, you are not on the 15 minutes list.
Mr Bawa 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
So, when the President --
rose
- 2:50 p.m.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Very well.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Member for Abuakwa South?
Mr Samuel Atta Akyea 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, my good Friend on the other Side can disagree with the President but it is very unparliamentary to say the President has been disingenuous. I would want him to withdraw that statement because we should not earn
a reputation on disparaging the President at every turn. We must not lower the esteem of the Executive Head of Government. there is a better way of saying it. However, to say that the President is disingenuous -- rather he should withdraw and use a better word.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Hon Member, what is your suggested ‘better' word?
Mr Akyea 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, what I suggest is that: “I disagree with the President” and that will be sufficient. This is because anytime, we say that someone is disingenuous, it is tainted with dubiousness and that is what it means. That is my position.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Well, I do not consider that insulting but Hon Member, the Hon Akyea says you should use another way of saying the same thing.
Mr Bawa 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, for me, taking out the word ‘disingenuous' does not affect my presentation. So, I withdraw it.
Mr Speaker, the Government seems to be creating the impression that the debt that we have in the power sector is as a result of overcapacity. I would just like to present some figures
to this issue. The Energy Commission indicated that our installed capacity was roughly around 4,900MWS; installed capacity is not the same as dependable capacity. Our de- pendable capacity is 3,500MWs and our peak demand is 2,700MWs.
Per technical advice, every system that you have, you must always ensure that 25 per cent of your peak demand is available as redundancy. If we multiply 25 by 2,700MWs, it results in 675MWs.
Mr Speaker, according to the President, about 15 per cent of Ghanaians do not have access to electricity. What this simply means is that there are Ghanaians who do not enjoy electricity. Meanwhile, as a country, we have power --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Hon Member, I am signalling you that your time is up.
Mr Bawa 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, let me just conclude on this.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Please, conclude.
Mr Bawa 2:50 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for your kindness.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 2:50 p.m.
Hon Stephen Amoah?
Mr Stephen Amoah (NPP-- Nhyiaeso) 3 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for this opportunity.
Mr Speaker, firstly, I would like to express my profound gratitude to the President for the remarkable presentation he made yesterday. To be honest with you, my mother is an illiterate and listened to the Twi version of the SONA and called me and said: “Ei, Nana Yaw, mu abo mu hu moden o ; to wit, ‘you have done well'.
Mr Speaker, I beg to quote the last paragraph of page 4 on the SONA presented by the President. It says:
“Mr Speaker, my Government found the resources to cushion the impact of the pandemic because we are good managers of the economy and we are good protectors of the public purse”.
Mr Speaker, one of my Hon Colleagues on the other Side had issues with that but I think that the Message of the President has enough backing in terms of reference and comparative analysis. In 2016, the inflationary rate was about 17.46 per cent; as I speak, it is about 8.4 per cent and policy rate was 25.5 per cent.
Interestingly, the Government at the time was actually operating policy rate that was even higher than some of the banking or lending rates today. It is extremely interesting that anybody from any school of thought will try to compare the two fraternities in terms of who is the better manager of the economy.
Mr Speaker, the gross domestic product (GDP) was 3.7 and surprisingly, in 2000, it was 3.7 as if they have a clue to the Einstein constante cosmologica described by the Greek letter “Lambda” that the
NDC government's ability to manage this economy is always constant -- below 4 per cent.
Under His Excellency Nana Akufo-Addo but for the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected the economy, we left averagely 7 per cent annually and this is a fact without ambiguity or debate.
Mr Speaker, analysing the country's economy, we should consider the long-term economic growth and stability as our main goal. Of course, it is a function of productivity and labour force. We have a country in which the essential services in achieving this main goal includes the health and education sector.
An NDC party that is known to be a social democratic party and is supposed to adopt contractual physical policies to ensure that these pro-poor policies are entrenched in managing our economy, they withdrew teacher and nursing training allowances simply because they had lost track of the economy. No wonder they went to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for credibility policy. [Interruption.] The most important factor is that because they had no understanding on how to manage our economy, they had to go
and import credibility policy which was the first time in our history. I thought we were importing goods and services and so on but it was the NDC that imported the policy on credibility.
Mr Speaker, --[Uproar] -- [Hear!] [Hear!] -- you can trust the NPP in managing the economy.

Apart from the primary macro indicators which is the springboard for the performance of the secondary macro indicators, that is, industries, agriculture, infrastructure, et cetera, the next thing is how that could be translated into policies that would ensure that as a developing economy, we can put measures in place to take care of poverty in our country.

I really want to find out whether our Hon Brothers from the other Side have sat down to analyse their own policies because we know that as social democrats, they are supposed to adopt and implement pro-poor policies.

Mr Speaker, almost all the pro- poor policies in our country which have national tenacity and character; none of them, either cash or kind and in terms of LEAP, education and health -- even when we were passing the National Health Insurance law,
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Available Hon Leader?
Dr Kwabena Donkor 3 p.m.
Mr Speaker, this Side objects to the word “messed” that he used.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3 p.m.
Hon Member, what is wrong with the word “messed”? Is it offensive or insulting?
Dr Donkor 3 p.m.
Mr Speaker, this Side finds the word to be offensive.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3 p.m.
Hon Member for Nhyiaeso, I am not ruling that it is offensive or insulting, but you might want to choose an alternative word to ensure that we have a smooth debate.
Mr S. Amoah 3 p.m.
Mr Speaker, if the Hon Member has an issue with that word, I withdraw same but they underperformed their benchmark and mismanaged the economy which led to all the problems that this Government inherited.
Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague made a statement that the President could not even offer any stimulus package. I think this confirms the fact that they have to open their eyes. Mr Speaker, I beg to quote page 4 paragraph 2 of the President's Address:
“The formulation and implementation of the COVID- 19 preparedness and response plan, tracing, testing, treatment, waiver of personal income tax and provision of an additional fifty per cent (50%) basic salary allowance to healthcare workers, expanding the capacities of laboratories to increase COVID-19 testing, establishment of isolation centres in all regions and districts, fumigation of markets and schools, provision of food packages and hot meals for residents in areas affected by the partial lockdown, provision of free water for all households, provision of free electricity for lifeline consumers and a fifty per cent (50%) discount for all other consumers, reduction in the Communication Service Tax (CST) from nine per cent (9%) to five per cent (5%), the institution of a seven hundred and fifty million Ghana cedis
(GH¢750 million) loan facility for micro, small and medium enterprises through the CAPBUS Initiative, and the provision of a two billion cedi (GH¢2 billion) guarantee facility to support large businesses, such as schools and pharmaceutical companies, are amongst the several measures put in place by Government to cushion Ghanaians from the impact of the pandemic.”
Mr Speaker, almost every single issue that they have raised was addressed by the President. They talked about a misconception that the President did not touch on the LGBTQI, but on 26th November 2017, there was “homosexuality not Ghana's agenda”. On 30th April 2018, the Ghanaian President said that he would never oversee same sex legislation.
On 28th February 2021 he made a statement and a few days ago he made a statement. Mr Speaker, I think what the President did was an illustration of the fact that he is a leader who understands time management. Because of the limited time resource he had and since everyone in Ghana knew his position on this issue, he could not have repeated that.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3 p.m.
Hon Dafeamekpor?
Should I move to the next Hon Member? Very well.
Hon Bashir F. Alhassan?
Alhaji Bashir F. Alhassan (NDC -- Sagnarigu) 3 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for this opportunity.
Mr Speaker, it is said that when the elder is in the house, the grain would not be allowed to be soaked by the rain. I have no doubt in my mind that this debate would be steered to its logical conclusion.
Mr Speaker, I rise to contribute to this issue on a background of profound sadness. I feel very sad
because a wonderful opportunity that the President had with this distinguished platform to rally and unite the nation and point towards a creditable vision for this nation was blown to pieces on the altar of unbridled partisan politics, cheap as it was.
Mr Speaker, at this very time -- and I am speaking metaphorically -- when the leaders of other nations are leading their people to hunt and kill buffalos and elephants, our President is leading us to catch mice and lizards. Such have we descended into the level of mediocrity that a nation today celebrates mediocrity and infamy.
Mr Speaker, I felt very ashamed when this country was touted among the poorest countries in Africa, and out of the poorest, among the first to receive aid --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on. Switch off your microphone. Your time has stopped running.
Yes, Hon Deputy Majority Leader?
Mr Afenyo-Markin 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, my respected colleague's metaphor must be placed in a proper construct for us to appreciate, else, to a very large extent, it would mislead
us in this Chamber. He should speak in plain language for us to understand and appreciate. Metaphors must be well placed in a proper construct.
So we are here. He should debate well. If he has the courage, he should say it in plain language so we face him.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Member, please continue.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much. I was only referring to when leaders of other nations are crafting positive visions that would catapult their countries to higher levels of development and anchor them to achieve a better and more sustainable lives for their people, we are engaged in celebrating mediocrity.
Mr Speaker, here, I was talking about Ghana; Kwame Nkrumah's Ghana, today listed among the poorest countries in Africa, and even among the poorest, among the first to receive COVAX. The euphemism for poorest countries in Africa getting donations of vaccines. And we have to organise and celebrate that. This is the depth of infamy I am complaining about.
Those of us in this House had the bounding duty to the generations yet unborn to make sure that the vision that we encapsulated in this country anchors this country for further progress into the 22nd and 23rd centuries.
Mr Speaker, I am not amused a bit, and especially for the areas that the President failed to talk about. In particular, among all the three organs of Government, this is the only place where democracy is not only practiced but seen to be practiced. The other organs of government, respectfully, Mr Speaker, are not bastion of democracy as this House is. And so we have the bounding duty to enable the discourse and protection of those who have stood for our democracy.
Mr Speaker, I would want to take this opportunity to celebrate the martyrs of this country; those who lost their lives on December 7th and after in the protection and promotion of our democratic process. I cannot name them all, but all of them deserve not only our mention but our eloquent support to be elevated to the status of martyrs of our democracy.
Mr Speaker, our people say that a landlord who is in pervious to the complaints of his tenants runs the risk collapsing his house if he fails to listen
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Deputy Majority Leader?
Mr Afenyo-Markin 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, with respect, my Hon colleague cannot say Mr President is trying to protect some friends who are engaged in this. It is not right. He can raise his criticisms, but with respect, he should withdraw that bit. If he is put to test whether he knows any friend of Mr President, could he mention? He is an honourable person.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Member, did you say that? Frankly, I did not get that.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I said in not speaking to that, he could be acquiescing in the act those people --
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Member, please withdraw that.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, on your guidance, I substitute it with the word that he could be acquiescing in the act that those people
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
Hon Members, please, let us not introduce any new word. Just withdraw that and continue with your debate.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, yes, I said I had withdrawn, but I said if he refuse to speak to abominable action, he could be acquiescing those acts, and that, does not speak about his commitments to such actions.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:10 p.m.
The President has spoken to that matter and the Hon Member for Nhyiaeso has given the number of times even this year. So basing on that a matter which is not the fact in itself is misleading.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:10 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I withdraw, but in saying so, I would want to draw a very sharp contrast between the attitudes of former Presidents and the current President on this matter.
Mr Speaker, we are very passionate about this matter. His Excellency the Late President Jerry John Rawlings made it abundantly clear that over his dead body would this matter come to this country and so did His Excellency John Agyekum Kufuor made it abundantly clear that never under his watch would he allow such a thing to happen.
Former President Mills of blessed memory said it that even if David Cameron had to come back and take all his aid out of the country, he was willing to stick his neck out and make sure that this abominable practice would not see the light of day in Ghana and so did it happen to His Excellency former President John Dramani Mahama; it would be over his dead body.
Mr Speaker, when it came to our President in the infamous Aljazeera interview, he said it was bound to happen, and that he needed a strong domestic coalition to grow for it to get roots in Ghana. And the next day, at an important forum like this, he refuses to speak on the matter.
Mr Speaker, if you hear the hauling of the hyena in the neighbourhood and the goat gets missing, you do not ask who caught it. [Laughter.] This is a Government that walked on the back of the people of this country to power on an anti-corruption crusade.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the President then in opposition said if by the grace of the Almighty Allah, the good people of this country gave him the mandate to steer the affairs of State, he was going to operate among others on the Anas Principle where evidence made available to him especially on tape recorders would be acted upon.

Mr Speaker, it is conspicuous to note, even notwithstanding today that he failed to mention the Office of the Special Prosecutor and what achievements, if any have been chalked. It is clear today that corruption is rather fighting the NPP Government and not the Government fighting corruption.

Mr Speaker, today, out of the litany of corruption allegations, not a single one has been successfully investigated and prosecuted. If given the opportunity, I can mention them to you and you would even ask me to sit. But it is instructive to note that not a single person under this administration has been brought to book for the various allegations of corruptions made.

Mr Speaker, compare that to President John Dramani Mahama. Under his watch, allegations of

corruptions were investigated; some people were prosecuted and some were incarcerated.

So, Mr Speaker, the way to fight corruptions -- [Interruption.] -- Compare that to what is happening today where even the Auditor- General has been hounded out of office. Anti-corruption agencies are hampered from carrying out their work. Refer to the outgone Special Prosecutor, who with his own mouth and 32 teeth told us what happened to him when he was attempting to go after some people.

Mr Speaker, one does not abhor pork as a Muslim and relish pork soup. One cannot have his mouth full of water and blow to rekindle fire. The President cannot show that rhetoric of corruption and yet by his own conduct be incapable of doing so. That double speech must give way to action.

Mr Speaker, I have also detected in this very House that every single Member of Parliament in this House has complained or gone to see Hon Amoako-Attah for roads. Under the obnoxious capping of statutory funds and earmarked funds, this Govern- ment has taken back hundreds of millions of Ghana cedis to the Ministry of Finance and deprived the Road Fund and others of the opportunity

to generate the requisite level of funds to pay contractors.

Everybody is complaining yet nobody has the guts to bear the cut and all of us as Members of Parliament -- that is why I say that as Members of Parliament, we have a historic responsibility to address those impediments that impede our development as a nation and not only on account of the political party that we belong to.

That we must all be seen to be forming one line and singing the praises of Government but those things that do not inure to us and to the benefit of this country, we must all rise up in unison and fight against that.

This same obnoxious policy has been applied to the GETFund, National Health Insurance Levy and that is why we are seeing that even health facilities that were built in remote areas can no longer be built today. GETFund which executed aggressive infrastructural development in secondary and tertiary institutions has been crippled today.

Mr Speaker, so this is where we are as a nation.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:20 p.m.
You have one more minute.
Alhaji B.F. Alhassan 3:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, as a House, I think we all have a binding duty to stand up and fight what is right and proper in our nation.
Mr Speaker, I want to say without any iota of hesitation that we are at a historical juncture where generations yet unborn would judge our conduct and behaviour when this matter of the supreme national interest has been raised and that is why I feel very disappointed in the performance of the President when he had this wonderful opportunity to put this issue across and rally the nation. He failed woefully.
Mr Alhassan T. Sulemana (NPP -- Gushegu) 3:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you. I thank His Excellency the President for delivering in accordance with his constitutional requirement under article 67, the State of the Nation Address.
Mr Speaker, the state of the nation, as the President addressed yesterday was as factual as it was inspiring.
Mr Speaker, I have perused the document and gleaned from it, over 30 thematic areas that the President
Mr Alhassan T. Sulemana (NPP -- Gushegu) 3:20 p.m.
spoke on yesterday and I think we all need to appreciate the fact that the President is a man of his words.

Mr Speaker, I have listened very attentively to the submissions made by Hon Kwabena Donkor, Hon Bawa, Hon John Jinapor and Hon Buah and I got the impression that the realities of the energy sector are being hidden from Ghanaians. Ghanaians have paid US$820,000,000 in 2018 and 2019 alone for power we have not used --
Mr Bedzrah 3:20 p.m.
On a point of Order. Mr Speaker, this is a House of record. My Hon Colleague just said something and everybody is wondering what he meant by that statement. He said that when competent Presidents are being counted, President Akufo-Addo should be put aside that he is not competent to be counted. We want him to clarify it.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:20 p.m.
That is your interpretation and unfortunately, your interpretation is different from mine. Mine interpretation is that he is above the others so he should be put aside.
Yes, Hon Member, continue.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:20 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the difference between the installed generation capacity, which is 5043 megawatts, and the projected system peak for 2020, which is 3150 megawatts including export demand, is far in excess of the 25 per cent system reserve margin. But as I said, in 2018, we spent US$320 million, paid for it and never used the power. That is as a result of contract that we have been committed to as a country.
Mr Speaker, in 2019, with the addition of sen-power, we paid US$500 million for power we did not consume.
Mr Speaker, I have heard issues concerning petroleum product marking scheme and I am surprised
-- 3:20 p.m.
Dr Kwabena Donkor 3:20 p.m.
On a point of Order. Mr Speaker, I come under Order 91(a). Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague was talking about installed capacity and using it as a basis. He should be talking about
available capacity, which is different from installed capacity. That analysis is not done.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we paid for installed capacity and that is what we are addressing this nation on.
Mr Speaker, the petroleum product marking scheme that Hon Bawa was referring to is a mechanism that was started in 2012.
It is supposed to check for contamination or adulteration and then check at the various stations to identify whether foreign elements have been put inside the tank.

Mr Speaker, the NPA does it with the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA). So, any time that a product has been found not to have the requisite marker concentration, the station operator and the Oil Marketing Company (OMC) is fined, and GRA would also exact their pound on that particular OMC. So, the figures that have been given by Sea buoy is one that has not been confirmed and interrogated by anybody.

Mr Speaker, currently as we speak, there are over 110 OMCs before GRA and the Audit Service is being requested to make-do with some moneys that they have not been able to account for as far as the downstream is concerned. So, it is an ongoing process.

Mr Speaker, he also mentioned the issue of exports. In 2015, exports to Burkina Faso and Mali were 10 million litres. In 2016, it ballooned to 180 million litres. I had the opportunity to go to Burkina Faso and Mali.

I was led by the current Minister for State Enterprises and the claim that vehicles move petroleum products from Ghana to Burkina Faso and Mali could not be substantiated. Indeed, we are told that they do not allow Ghanaian number plate trucks to enter their country. Dumping was down right here in this country of 180 million litres of petroleum products.

Mr Speaker, then we had to revise the mechanism for the export of petroleum products. As we speak, even the 10 million litres in 2015, today, it is less than 500 litres. Who is fighting export dumping more than the other? The records are there. So, as we address the nation, we have to be factual as the President is.
rose
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Bawa?
Mr Bawa 3:30 p.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. The Hon Colleague is misleading the House. In fact, the reason why the project was called rural electrification was, before it was changed to national electrification scheme it was concentrated in the rural areas. So, it cannot be a statement of fact and so, he is misleading the House.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
How did he mislead the House?
Mr Bawa 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, he indicated that when the project started in 1989 with the 70 per cent, it was mainly in urban areas and that is not true.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, please continue.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, in 1991 the Northern Region was connected to the national grid, not he not in Tamale? Is Tamale a rural area? I was in school in 1991 when they did it. Gushegu was connected in 1996. All the 400 communities did not have electricity. So, it is our responsibility to ensure that com-
munities that are about 50 or 60 Kilometres from Gushegu are connected to the national grid.
Mr Speaker, largely, they concentrated on the low hanging fruits and we are doing the heavy lifting.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, you have one minute more.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I would like to conclude by looking at the Legacy Debt. The Legacy Debt that was inherited by this Government has been fully settled. It was US$1 billion to the downstream petroleum sector.
All Bulk Oil Distributing Companies's (BDC) Debts have been fully settled. Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Companies (BOST) had a debt of US$624 million, but as we speak, only US$54 million of the BOST debt is still outstanding. These are debts that the Government met; we did not generate those debts.
Mr Speaker, I would like to conclude by looking at the situation regarding LGBTQI+
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, Rt Hon Speaker advised in the morning. You do not conclude by introducing a new matter.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, former President Mills in 2011 said:
“I as President will never initiate or support any attempt to legalise homosexuality in Ghana.”
In 2017, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said that:
“For same sex marriage to be legalised in Ghana, it will not happen in my time as President. I have said it before and let me stress it again that it will not be under the presidency of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo that same sex marriage will be legalised.”
Mr Speaker, what is more clarifying than this one?
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, your time is up.
Mr A. T. Sulemana 3:30 p.m.
Thank you very much for the opportunity to speak on the state of the Nation. [Hear! Hear!]
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Members, there are three -- Can I have some order, please? I have three more contributors from the Majority side and four more contributors from the Minority side. I am advised by
rose
- 3:30 p.m.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Yes, Hon Leader?
Mr Avedzi 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I support the position, but once there are three members from the Majority side and four from the Minority side, we would like to take one more from the Minority side so that we are at par. 10 or 15 minutes will be all right and then we suspend.
Mr First Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Member, I was ceding the seat to the Hon Second Deputy Speaker but I was advised that the Leadership said we should suspend after the Hon Member on his feet has spoken. So, it will not be fair for him to come and sit for 15 minutes to suspend Sitting and then resume. So, please let us work with the agreement you communicated to me. It will not make any difference. When we resume we will start from Hon Nortsu-Kotoe and then we continue. A list has been provided, so we will use it.
Hon Members, the House will resume at quarter to five.
MR SECOND DEPUTY SPEAKER
MOTIONS 3:30 p.m.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 3:30 p.m.
Hon Members, we would not waste time, we would continue with the debate, and it is the turn of the Hon Peter Nortsu-Kotoe.
Mr Peter Kwasi Nortsu-Kotoe (NDC -- Akatsi North) 3:30 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you very much for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion moved by the Hon Member for Okaikwei Central, the Hon Patrick Yaw Boamah, that this House thanks the President for the Message on the State of the Nation delivered yesterday.
Mr Speaker, in doing so, I would like to dwell very much on education. I agree very much with the President when he said that he is passionate about education, and that he would like to see every child in this country
becoming educated because education opens the doors to every citizen of this country. However, I have my challenges or problems, which he did not address in yesterday's State of the Nation Address, which should have been the way forward.
Mr Speaker, if we look at education in this country, the biggest challenge that we have at the basic level is the infrastructure. I was expecting the President yesterday to tell us the major steps that are being taken to solve the infrastructural challenges that face the basic schools in this country.
Mr Speaker, if we watch television news these days, we would see pictures of children learning under trees, and in this century, we should have gone past that by now as a country, but here we are, still we are studying under trees. We should overcome that, and I was expecting the President to give us an emphatic statement on this that this is the programme that as a Government, he has, going forward, to resolve these infrastructural challenges at the basic schools.
Mr Speaker, again, when we look at furniture in our basic schools, it is also very appalling. At this time of the COVID-19 pandemic where we are
preaching social distancing, we would see that three pupils are sitting on one desk that is meant for only two. They sit in threes on those desks, so, how are we fighting the COVID-19 pandemic?
Mr Speaker, we therefore have various challenges at the basic school level. Also, there are no textbooks for our teachers to use, based on the new curriculum that was developed last year. As a result of this vacuum created, people are filling in with so many things that are not good for the consumption of our children.
For instance, there is one book published by Golden Publications, written by one Okyere Baafi Alexander. In that book, he portrayed a group of people in this country, for instance, the Ewes, as being people who like juju, and it is very appalling. Why should somebody write such books for our students or pupils to read in our basic schools?
Mr Speaker, there is also another one written by one Mercy Gyan- Adiyeah, also Published by the Golden Publications on history. In that book, a paragraph talks about the first President of the Republic, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, as being a dictator who wasted the resources of this country by supporting the independence of other African countries such as Guinea.
Mr Peter Kwasi Nortsu-Kotoe (NDC -- Akatsi North) 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, if you go through those books, you would realise that these are not the books that our children should be made to learn. So, the Ghana Education Service or the Ministry of Education ought to know that in those days, whenever a new curriculum was developed, the first thing to have been done, was to engage a team of experts in various subject areas to write the relevant text-books, and based on those textbooks, , other writers could publish supplementary textbooks or readers for schools, but that is not what is happening now, so people are filling in with whatever they think the children should learn, and that would not help us as a nation.
Mr Speaker, if we go to the secondary level, we saw the introduction of the Free Senior High School Programme in 2017, and we all agree that once it was an idea which every political party in this country had thought of, and the Government was able to roll it out on a wholesale project, we should all support it.
But we cautioned Government on a number of things that needed to be done before the introduction of the project or the programme, and still, those projects are yet to be done. So,
what we are trying to say is that the senior high school system, as it is now, needs a thorough review, so that the bottlenecks that bedevilled the system can be removed.
Mr Speaker, as we are talking now, the double track system is still there, and we do not know when it would end. However, we expect that we should be told when it would end. This is because as we speak now, it is still in existence, and it is even being introduced in the universities. The University of Ghana had to introduce the double track system when schools re-opened recently, and that is not good for us.
Mr Speaker, I would just want to remind the President that he promised in 2016 that on assuming office as the President of this country, he was going to build 350 new secondary schools. As we speak, not one in the last four years has been established. What is preventing the creation or the establishment of these 350 senior high schools?
Mr Speaker, we know very well that the double track system as we said is not the best for our educational system because it has its own challenges, and these challenges are many. The unfortunate thing that happened is the COVID-19 pandemic, which has distorted all our
school programme or calendar. So, right now, we do not know whether we are in a gold track or green track. So, there is the need for us to make sure that concrete efforts are taken by Government to make sure that we end this double track system.
Mr Speaker, another major problem is the release of funds to the secondary schools to run their programmes. As we talk now, we are in March, and no money has been released to the schools to run them. So, what is happening now is that they are finding life difficult in the schools. Buffer stock is not providing the necessary food stuffs that are needed. What we need to do, is to stop the over centralisation of the supply of items to the senior high schools.

If we stop the centralisation of procurement and decentralise it, it would in the first place, create jobs at the district level. If everything is procured at the centre in Accra and distributed, it would not help. It would also just centralise wealth in the hands of few people. We can distribute wealth and make sure that everybody benefits from whatever procurement exercise that takes place.

Mr Speaker, the items supplied in schools also have to be looked at carefully. I have here a tin fish supplied to some of our schools. [Hon Member shows a tin of fish]. When you look at it, it is covered with this. This is not the best. According to our laws, when something is imported from another country, at least, the inscription should be in a language that we understand.

The inscription here is not in English, so the one who supplied it just created this and covered it like this and we have Afriyie. It says it is coming from Indonesia, but the language is not English. Mr Speaker, we have a challenge with the type of food that are introduced in our schools.

Again, if you look at this also, this one is a mackerel label -
rose
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:35 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on. Hon Member for Subin?
Mr E.B. Antwi 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, please, can the Hon Nortsu-Kotoe tender whatever he is holding in evidence for us to check the veracity of the product?
Mr James K. Avedzi 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am not sure the Hon Member demanded that the tin fish that Hon Nortsu-Kotoe is using to illustrate his point should be tendered in. I do not know under which Standing Order he demanded that and the purpose for which he would want the tin fish to be tendered in. I do not know whether he has some kenkey somewhere to go and enjoy with the tin fish. [Laughter].
Mr E.B. Antwi 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, Standing Order 91 -- [Interruption]. Mr Speaker, can we have some decorum in the Chamber please?
Some Hon Members 5:35 p.m.
Read it.
Mr E.B. Antwi 5:35 p.m.
I do not have to read it; you all have the Standing Orders. What I am asking the Hon Nortsu-Kotoe, a very respectable Member of the House, to do is to tender that product in evidence for us to see the veracity of it because he has referred to it.
Mr Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we are here to learn. We have people at the gallery. If my Hon Colleague stands up to say Standing Order 91 without necessarily reading or telling us what it is all about, it is for us to educate ourselves.
With your permission, Mr Speaker, Standing Order 91 says:
“Debates may be interrupted --
(a)by a point of order being raised;
(b)by a matter of privilege suddenly arising;
(c)by attention being called to the absence of a quorum;
(d)by attention being called to the presence of strangers.
Maybe, he wants us to close. Which Standing Order is he referring to?
Mr E. B. Antwi 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I believe we have had this back and forth in the Chamber, and the Hon Deputy Majority Leader referred us to a decision that was taken in this House. We referred to Standing Order 91 and 30 just this morning in connection with the same issue. All I am asking Hon Nortsu-Kotoe to do is to tender his evidence for us to see whatever he is holding.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:35 p.m.
Hon Member, I appreciate where you are coming from, but let us allow the debate to flow.
Hon Member, you can go on.
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, in the Address yesterday, the President informed us that for the first time, professional allowance was being paid to teachers. Mr Speaker, that information is inaccurate because I know very well that in April 2010, the late Prof Mills, the then President of the Republic, introduced the payment of professional allowance and this was effected in July 2010. So, that information is not correct.
rose
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Ministry of Education are attempting to violate article 25 of the Constitution --
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:35 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on. Hon Member for Kwadaso?
Dr Nyarko 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I am up on Standing Order 92(b).
“No Member shall interrupt any other Member except: --
“to elucidate some matter raised by the Member speaking in the course of his speech, provided that the Member speaking is
willing to give and resume his seat, and that the Member wishing to interrupt is called by Mr Speaker.”
He raised a point that is not accurate. He accused the President of not being fair to a statement he made that his Government paid teachers both professional and non- professional continuous professional development allowance. This money was paid last year. It was GH¢1,200 for professional teachers, and GH¢800 for non-professional teachers. This is a fact; this was honoured by the President. So respectfully, he cannot say that it is untrue.
He also said that the double track system is being practiced in our tertiary institutions. This is not true. He should point to us which institutions in this country practise the double track system.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:35 p.m.
Hon Member, after Hon Nortsu- Kotoe, you would have the Floor, so, you can address some of these issues. Let us allow the debate to flow.
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 5:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, information available is that in our SHS now, SHS 1 is referred to as basic 10. Meanwhile, basic education ends at the junior high school which
Dr Kingsley Nyarko (NPP -- Kwadaso) 5:45 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the President's message to this august House yesterday.
I must say that the President's message yesterday was refreshing, profound, impactful and provided hope to us for now and the future. I also want to commend the President for appreciating the work of this august House, especially the work done by the Appointments Committee. He was
grateful to this House for the expeditious and thorough manner in which his Ministers were scrutinised by the House and I think that for the President to give us this recognition is something that needs commendation.
Mr Speaker, he also enjoined us to allow the interest of the nation to guide us as Members of this august House. He admonished us to work together, shoulder to shoulder. He enjoined us to put the interest of Ghana, what he referred to as the Ghana project, on the front burner. We are not in this House perchance but we are here because our constituents made it possible for us to be here.
They brought us here not to pursue our individual interests and agenda. They brought us here to pursue the Ghana agenda, an agenda that would see to the transformation and progress of this country. This is what we have to do and posterity would judge us by what we do to transform the fortunes of this country and the lives of the people. On that score, Mr Speaker, I hope that we would take his admonishment in good faith and work towards the accomplishment of this noble end of the President.
Mr Speaker, the President also talked about COVID-19 and its ravaging effects on the economy. He alluded to the fact that COVID-19 has led to job losses in the country. It has also affected negatively, our gross domestic product (GDP) growth. He also said that COVID-19 is taking a toll on our health system. These are all facts and nobody in this House can say that no country in this world has not been affected by the adverse effects of COVID-19. Even the advanced economies in this world have all suffered setbacks as a result of COVID-19.
The Statistical Research Department in an article that was published on 23rd February, 2021, indicated that most major economies will lose at least 2.4 per cent of the value of their GDP in 2020. This made economies to reduce their 2020 forecasts of global economic growth, down from around three per cent to 4.5 per cent. This clearly shows that economies in the world have had devastating consequences.
Mr Speaker, this same report indicated that global stock markets suffered dramatic falls. Dow Jones reported its longest ever single day fall of almost 3,000 points on March 16, 2020. This was after it suffered a similar setback of losing 2,300 points four days earlier. In a study done by
Dr Kingsley Nyarko (NPP -- Kwadaso) 5:55 p.m.
Jones et al, 2021, they showed that the Financial Times Stock exchange, dropped by 14.3 per cent in 2020, its worst performance since 2008.
In the same article in the United States of America (USA), the proportion of people out of work hit a yearly total of 8.9 per cent, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This signalled an end to a decade of job expansion. Obviously, COVID-19 is having an egregious effect on the economy and for our President to have managed this economy in this way, I think that all well-meaning Ghanaians must applaud him. This is because our economy is one of the most resilient economies in the world and nobody can deny that.
The President also said that COVID-19 is affecting our healthcare system and that is a fact. There is a strain on our health facilities and that is why the President promised to build 111 district hospitals in the country. I want to plead with this House to support the President to achieve this end. [Hear! Hear!] Sadly for me, my constituency was not included and I want to plead with the Hon Minister for Health to include Kwadaso by providing it with a district hospital and I am sure that he would do that.
Mr Speaker, yesterday, on my way to Accra from Kumasi, I was listening to Peace FM and I heard the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Intercity STC Coaches Limited, Nana Akomea, say that because of COVID-19, his entity is losing 40 per cent of its revenue. This 40 per cent amounts to GH¢2 million a month.
During the COVID-19 period, we all saw some institutions' activities go down because most of them were running shifts. This obviously would affect our revenue envelope. The President has done well and yesterday, according to Nana Akomea, the President provides STC with a monthly support of GH¢1 million. He is a good President who thinks about the success of this economy.
Mr Speaker, I would want to move to education. Before I do that, as I was listening to the debate this morning, I heard some of our Hon Colleagues say that our economy is in a comatose state. However, when my Hon Colleague and friend from Nhyiaeso said that the NDC run a messy economy, they asked him to retract.
Records are there and nobody can circumvent them. The average GDP growth rate was seven per cent and under the NDC, it was 2.8 per cent. It is a fact that in 2017, the economy grew by 8.4 per cent; in 2018, it grew
by 6.2 per cent, and in 2019, it grew by 6.5 per cent; an annual average of seven per cent. As I said earlier, under the NDC, it was 2.8 per cent. Inflation in 2016 was 15.4 per cent and at the end of December 2019, inflation had dropped to 7.9 per cent.

Mr Speaker, with regard to the fiscal deficits, in 2016, the fiscal deficit was about 6.8 per cent under the NDC but in 2018, it was 3.8 per cent and in 2019, it was 4.8 per cent, which is far better than what the NDC left behind in 2016. So, we cannot describe this economy as a messy or comatose one. In the reverse, what happened under the NDC administration is the perfect description of that.

Mr Speaker, with regard to the strands of our currency, under the NDC administration, the cedi depreciated by 18 per cent but under President Akuffo-Addo's adminis- tration it depreciated by 8.7 per cent, which is half of what happened under the reign of the NDC. This economy has been run well.

Mr Speaker, my Hon Colleague on the other Side made some allusions with regard to education which are untrue. In this country, tertiary

institutions do not run the double track system. In fact, even at the secondary school level very soon, the double track system would be a thing of the past. Those in the final year do not engage in the double track system and the first year students would not also be engaged in the double track system. So, that allusion from him is not correct.
rose
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:55 p.m.
Hon Member, please, hold on.
Hon Member, for Akatsi North, what is the issue?
Mr Nortsu-Kotoe 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I come under Order 91 (a) which says that:
“Debates may be interrupted --
(a)by a point of order being raised''.
Mr Speaker, with your permission, I beg to quote Order 30 (f), which says 5:55 p.m.
“deliberate misleading of Parliament or any of its Committees;''
Mr Speaker, I know very well and it is on record that the University of Ghana has introduced the double
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:55 p.m.
Hon Member, just take a cue.
Mr K. Nyarko 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, as far as I know, the University of Ghana does not run the double track system. What I know is that over the years, institutions run so many programmes like the sandwich programme and et cetera, but it is not the official policy of Government to run the double track system at that level.
Mr Speaker, with regard to education, the President said he was passionate about the education of our children. He said that education provides opportunities for all and sundry.
One significant thing I realised about the President was his leadership skills during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the Government wanted the final year students to write their respective examinations, some people kicked against that but because of his exemplary leadership, he made sure that the examinations were written. Interesting, Nigeria which said that it would not allow its secondary school final year students
to write the WASSCE, did a detour and because of the example set by Ghana, they allowed the students to write the examinations. During the period of the shutdown of schools, the Government provided online opportunities for teaching and learning to continue.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:55 p.m.
Hon Member, please, wind up.
Mr K. Nyarko 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, what is important is that as much as the Government did everything possible to ensure that online education was encouraged, I would want a more robust ICT infrastructure to be provided by the Government.
Mr Speaker, in conclusion, in November 2020, the Government provided 13 public institutions in this country with wireless fidelity connectivity in universities like the University of Ghana, University of Cape Coast, et cetera. Between 2015 and 2020, four private institutions received presidential charter.
In 2016, only the Central University received presidential charter but under the Akufo-Addo administration, three institutions received presidential charter; Ashesi
University, Pentecost University and All Nations University. As I speak, there are four in the pipeline to receive charter very soon.
Mr Speaker, under the fourth Republican Constitution, no president beats President Nana Akufo-Addo. He is the gem and the visionary leader Ghana has now, and through him, I want to assure the House that the fortunes of this country and the economy would be transformed to the destination that our forefathers envisaged.
Mr Speaker, on this score, I bow and thank you for the opportunity. Hear! Hear!
Mr Avedzi 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I would want to draw your attention to the fact that the Hon Member spoke for 14 minutes 47 seconds although he was entitled to 10 minutes. So, the Hon Member who would contribute from our Side should also be given the same duration - [Interruption] - anytime there is interaction, the clock is paused so that could not be the reason. That is never true.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:55 p.m.
Hon Member for Krachi West, Mrs Helen Ntoso?
Mr Avedzi 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, if you could call the next person?
Mr Annoh-Dompreh 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Deputy Minority leader said he timed the Hon Member for Kwadaso when he was speaking and that he spoke more than the agreed time. We must set the records straight. From the onset, we said that Hon Members would speak for 10 minutes and the timing is in your bosom and not the Hon Member, so he cannot --
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 5:55 p.m.
Hon Majority Chief Whip, your point has been noted and it would be addressed.
Mr Avedzi 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I would want to draw his attention so that next time he does not repeat same because he could also read the time on his console.
Dr Sabastian Ngmenenso Sandaare (NDC -- Daffiama/ Bussie/Issa) 5:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the Motion.
Mr Speaker, we are indeed, grateful to the President for fulfilling what the Constitution mandates him to do. However, as much as we thank him.
Dr Sabastian Ngmenenso Sandaare (NDC -- Daffiama/ Bussie/Issa) 6:05 p.m.


Mr Speaker, I would want to say that inasmuch as we thank the President, I was not really impressed about the Message because while the Constitution demands that he gives a Message on the state of the nation, which, in my view, is a snapshot of the current situation we find ourselves in as a nation, he decided to give a manifesto.

I say so because, I have done some analysis of the Message delivered by previous Presidents; Rawlings, Kufuor, Atta-Mills, Mahama and I can say that from my analysis, this particular SONA is substandard, not so competent and does not meet the standards.

Mr Speaker, however, while the President talked more on COVID- 19 pandemic and its impact on the economy, he failed to acknowledge that we lost about 656 people to the pandemic, 86,737 people got infected and while he was giving the SONA yesterday, at Apam, a coastal area in Ghana, there was a reported case of the lives of 20 children being lost. I did not hear the President say anything about that which I thought was unfortunate and really did not address much of the state of Ghana. We can forgive him for that.

I was quite happy that the President acknowledged one thing which I have been stating since I came to this House that all the fine policies, desires, and vision that we have for this country is based on one assumption; that we are healthy as a people. The COVID-19 pandemic has come to shift the conversation from economy, energy to health that now, as a people in a global community, we have seen a practical impact of the relationship between health and wealth.

Mr Speaker, the President mentioned interventions that we have put in place to address the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. He mentioned the free water, electricity, meals, waiver of personal income tax, plus 50 per cent basic salary allowance to healthcare workers, GH¢750 million loan facility to micro and medium enterprises, GH¢2billion facility to other people but inasmuch as that is true, we are yet to see who really benefitted --
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:05 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin 6:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order.
The metaphor underpinning the submission of my Hon Colleague
which submission led him into saying that; ‘this State of the Nation is substandard'. This, in my view, is very un-parliamentary and unacceptable.
Mr Speaker, he can in the least, disagree. We must not use certain - if he says he has listened to former Presidents Rawlings, Kufour and the others, and saying that this SONA is substandard -- I am saying that we should encourage each other to express our disagreement in a language acceptable to us.
If in the Hon Member's view, he disagrees with the submission by the President, that is his right but he should not say that it is substandard. By what level of measurement is it substandard? Is it by his objectivity or subjectivity? Let us be clear so that both Sides can enrich the debate with the use of proper language.
Mr Speaker, that is all I demand but if Hon Avedzi, as a Deputy Minority Leader, believes that it is acceptable, so be it. I have made my point.
Mr Avedzi 6:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Member is expressing his opinion; his assessment of the SONA delivered by the President. He compared it with the previous SONAs by the previous Presidents and by his assessment, this is substandard.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Member has the right to assess unless Hon Afenyo- Markin wants to say that in this House, we do not have a mind of our own to think and assess anything here.
So, I think that we should allow Hon Sandaare to continue.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:05 p.m.
Hon Sandaare, you may take a cue and continue.
Dr Sandaare 6:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am grateful for your guidance. Inasmuch as these interventions were given, what we have not seen are those who benefitted from these interventions.
Mr Speaker, whiles the President preaches about free water and electricity, there are people who really suffered from a situation of no water at all. There are communities that do not even have boreholes let alone talk about free flowing water. What intervention was put in place for the provision of water to these people?
So, it is the opinion of others that these interventions rather widen the gap between the poor and the rich because many of the poor in society did not benefit from these interventions.
Dr Sandaare 6:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, for the sake of time, let me talk on what the President calls ‘Agenda 111'. On page 6 of this year's SONA it reads as folllows:
“As announced last year, Agenda 111, which will see to the construction of 100-bed District Hospitals in one hundred and one (101) Districts with no hospitals, seven (7) Regional Hospitals for the new Regions, including one for the Western Region, the construction of two (2) new psychiatric hospitals for the Middle Belt and Northern Belt, respectively, and the rehabilitation of Effia-Nkwanta Hospital in the Western Region, is on course.”
Construction of some of these hospitals has commenced, and will continue without interruption”.

Mr Speaker, the Hon Minister for Health was vetted just a few days ago and he admitted that they are still even working on the land. Some may have cleared the land issue but with others they are still on the land issue and when all is cleared, the President will cut sod for the projects to begin.

Mr Speaker, when did the President cut sod on these projects that nobody heard or saw? There is disparity between the President and his Hon Minister so who do we believe and where can we find these projects that have started and are to be continued?

Mr Speaker, but what I am interested in is that he said “Agenda 111, the largest ever investment in healthcare infrastructure in our history is part of a massive vision for Ghana's healthcare sector, the realisation of which would lead Ghana into becoming a Centre of Medical Excellence and a destination for medical tourism …”

Mr Speaker, the projects have not even started and the Hon Minister was asked the costs and budgetary allocation but he was not sure. So, the Government does not even know how much these projects would cost, yet the President calls it the largest intervention in healthcare.

Mr Speaker, he does not know the cost but he is already comparing it to others. I would refer the House to the era of former President John Dramani Mahama. He invested about US$2 billion in health infrastructure and we can attest to that because the University of Ghana Medical Centre which is even a COVID-19 treatment centre, the Ga East Hospital, and the

Accra Regional Hospital at Ridge are what we see as marching words with action. This is what is called integrity in leadership. When what is said is marched with what is done then it can be said that the President is delivering.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:15 p.m.
Hon Member wind up.
Dr Sandaare 6:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the President should deliver on his promises because this is 2016 Manifesto rehearsed in a COVID-19 Ghanaians State of the Nation Address.
Mr Speaker, the President has been talking, but Dafiama in the Upper West, the people do not have a hospital, the people of Lambussie do not have a hospital as well as the people of Wa East, Wa West and Sisala West, so the President should act fast and ensure that access to healthcare is achieved for us to achieve universal health coverage. The President should also pay the frontline health workers who have sacrificed to take care of Ghanaians.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much for the opportunity.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:15 p.m.
It is now the turn of the Hon Member for Ejisu.
Mr John A. Kumah (NPP -- Ejisu) 6:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you very much.
Mr Speaker, I have heard Hon Members on the other Side speak about the economy of Ghana as if it is in total deterioration, but I just want to remind some of them that signs of deterioration of the economy is when a country is carried to IMF for a bail out. The record of this Government was to take the country from the arms of conditionalities of IMF. Signs of deterioration of the economy is when this country is plunged into a prolonged five years of dumsor.
Mr Speaker, as we speak, Ghana is enjoying constant supply of electricity. Mr Speaker, Hon A. B. Fuseini expressed his unhappiness because Ghana received 600,000 AstraZeneca vaccines and he described it as Ghana being added to the group of poorest countries. I would want to bring to the notice of this House that a country like Australia has been blocked from receiving just 200,000 vaccines of AstraZeneca by Italy.
For Ghana to be selected among its peers to receive 600,000 of these vaccines means that we are doing something right in this country. Mr Speaker, this speaks on good governance and good management of the COVID-19 situation in our
Mr John A. Kumah (NPP -- Ejisu) 6:25 p.m.
country as we speak today and so we should be proud that we have a Government that can attract the attention of the world for us to receive assistance for our people as early as possible.
Mr Speaker, as I speak, I am a beneficiary of these 600,000 vaccines that we have received and I believe many of us and over 300,000 Ghanaians have already been vaccinated and we should be proud and thankful to the President.
Mr Speaker, I beg to refer the House to page 14 of the Address and to speak about how digitalisation has helped to promote E-Justice and E- case management in our country. Technology is helping to improve justice delivery in our country and the era of missing dockets which is a phenomenon in most of our courts because of the manual filing systems is gradually becoming a thing of the past.
In fact, Government, through the local government and the District Assemblies Common Fund, has commenced various projects; construction of about 90 courts with accompanying accommodation for judges across the country.
It is also important to note that the President also noted that about 20 town houses and a guest house are being built to be used as permanent residences for Court of Appeal Judges based in Kumasi who are mandated to handle cases in the northern part of the country.
Mr Speaker, but with all these interventions, my greatest joy is the amendment that has been made to the Court Act by Court Regulation 2020 (L.I. 2024). The relevant amendments have made it possible to expand the jurisdictional capacity of our district courts and circuit courts. Mr Speaker, before, the jurisdiction of the district courts was about GH¢ 20,000, but that has now been increased to about GH¢500,000 and so our circuit courts can now handle cases up to GH¢2 million. Mr Speaker, this is a huge impact on the justice delivery system in our country.
This means that about 90 per cent of cases at the district level can now be handled at the district courts. If I had a civil litigation or there is a civil litigation among my constituents in Ejisu, the district court in Ejisu can handle the matter assuming the amount is about GH¢30,000 or GH¢50,000. Mr Speaker, formerly, this matter would have to be carried to Juaben or Goaso Circuit Court or to Kumasi, but this single intervention
or changes that have been made has made it possible for Ejisu and all other districts in Ghana with district courts to handle matters up to GH¢500,000.

Mr Speaker, this is huge. It would reduce the burden of many cases piled on our High Courts. It would bring justice to the doorsteps of the people. Now, there is no need to travel long distances to seek justice in our country, and I think this is a very positive intervention in our country to which I would want to bring our attention.

Mr Speaker, I would want to talk about another important subject of job creation. On page 11 of His Excellency's Address, he spoke about the Ghana Jobs and Skills project. This could be found on page 189 of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Manifesto where a facility of US$200 million was pledged to ensure that we promote jobs and skills training and provide entrepreneurial support for young people in our country.

Mr Speaker, this would lead to the development of competency training- based programmes with our various Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions.

About 100 traits and professions from level 1 (National Proficiency 1) to level 5 (High National Diploma), and it is targeting about 25,000 beneficiaries across the country.

Beyond that, SMEs, start-ups would also be targeted to receive entrepreneurial support and training which is also targeting about 50,000 individuals. It would seek to implement the Ghana Labour Market Information Systems and also upgrade the District Public Employment Centres and Services across the country.

Mr Speaker, this is very good news to the young people of our country. We know the difficulty in finding jobs in our country. The best way forward is to encourage young people to get employable skills, training on entrepreneurship on how they can set themselves up to receive knowledge, competencies and be able to become self-sufficient.

His Excellency the President is backing it up with a facility of GH¢200 million to make it possible for the young people of this country to start up their own businesses and to succeed and create worth for our country.

Mr Speaker, I would want to conclude by speaking to the promise
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:25 p.m.
Thank you very much, Hon Member.
Hon Andrew Dari Chiwitey?
Mr Andrew Dari Chiwitey (NDC -- Sawla/Tuna/Kalba) 6:25 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I must appreciate you for giving me the opportunity to speak to the motion.
Mr Speaker, while thanking the President for responding to the call of the Constitution, I wish to express
my opinion by saying that I disagree with him in most of the issues he raised in His State of the Nation Address. I really wish the President were around to let us know the status of Accra, whether the Accra he said he was going to make the cleanest city in Africa is so?
I really wish he had indicated what percentage of cleanliness level we have gotten to as far as the city of Accra is concerned yesterday. I cannot see the Hon Minister in charge of Sanitation and Water Resources, but I hope that the President would get to know that people in Accra and Ghanaians are saying that Accra is still very filthy. Accra is even dirtier than he inherited.
Mr Speaker, I am saying so because the President, since taking office in 2017, has not initiated enough activities that would clear the city of the filth. Let it rain this year, and the realities would show.
Mr Speaker, the President talked about some districts attaining the state open defecation free. Let us give thanks to a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) called Global Communities. Even if I do not know about constituencies, I know about
mine that is Sawla/Tuna/Kalba which has been declared open defeacation free because of the intervention of Global Communities.
Mr Speaker, Global Communities is an NGO that supports community members with boreholes, and the challenge the NGO throws to the communities is to ask the various communities to build toilets in their houses.
When the NGO is satisfied with the number of household toilets that the community have, then a borehole is provided for the community thereby making it very competitive for the rural communities. Let me rather take this opportunity to thank Global Communities because they have done a lot in my constituency.
Mr Speaker, the President talked about the provision of water. In 2017, around this time, the President was commissioning water systems. Even if I cannot remember anything at all, I remember that in 2017, the President commissioned a water system in Wa West which was started by the NDC Government.
In the State of the Nation Address, the President either said they had initiated the building of water systems or the projects were ongoing.
Mr Andrew Dari Chiwitey (NDC -- Sawla/Tuna/Kalba) 6:35 p.m.


Mr Speaker, I thought the President coming in as a person who has been mandated to rule the country for a second term would have told us yesterday that he has built, completed and commissioned these water projects in community A, B or C. All these things were missing. He talked about some communities where he commissioned water projects. He mentioned Amedzofe and Ziope.

Mr Speaker, I got in touch with Members of Parliament from those communities and the information we have gathered is that in Amedzofe and Ziope, these projects were commissioned. What about Akpokope? What about Batume junction? What about Matse? What about Dzolo Gbogame and the surrounding communities he indicated? Nothing is going on in those communities.

Mr Speaker, still on water, the President talks about the Yendi Water Project and the Tamale Water Project. He also talked about the Damango Water Project.

Mr Speaker, I come from the Savannah Region --[Interruption] -- He said he commissioned those projects but those projects have not

been completed and so he could not have commissioned them. I come from the Savanna Region and I know that nothing is going on in Damango. I just spoke with the Regional Water -- Sometimes some people can be vindictive because of that I will not mention any names but let me say -- [Interruption] --

Mr Speaker, most of these projects have been captured as projects that have been done. Well, as Hon Sandaare said, the talks are becoming too many. Ghanaians want to see action. Ghanaians want to feel the jobs of President Akufo-Addo. Ghanaians want to see their environment clean; they want to have water to drink and to have whatever promise President Akufo-Addo made in 2016 and 2020 delivered.

Mr Speaker, let me briefly touch on housing. I am happy Hon Atta Akyea is here. I still remember very well that in this Chamber, I asked a question on how -- Hon Atta Akyea, the then Minister for Works and Housing, in answering the question indicated that it is like the NDC and former President John Mahama were under a curse and so could not deliver. Hon Atta Akyea is here. From 2017 to 2021, how many housing projects has President Akufo-Addo's

Government delivered to Ghanaians? All those projects captured here are projects that were started and he could not complete them.

Mr Speaker, the President talks about handing over the Takoradi Housing Project, the Tamale Housing Project, and the Wa Housing Project to State Housing Corporation. Let the President know that former President John Dramani Mahama equally did same when he was the President. President Mahama handed over projects started by former President John Agyekum Kufuor to SSNIT and State Housing Corporation to complete.

He also handed over the Asokore Mampong Housing Project. So handing over projects to organisations are not work done. So the President should not tell us that he has handed over projects to organisations. Those are not things that we were waiting to hear from the President.

Mr Speaker, the President talked about coastal management. If you may permit me, on page 19 of the Message, he talks about the country's coast line. Mr Speaker, permit me to quote him:

“Mr Speaker, in the area of coastal management, we continue to improve the resilience of the country's coastline against tidal wave…”
Mr Afenyo-Markin 6:35 p.m.
On a point of Order. Mr Speaker, our Colleague in his submission in respect of the water projects the President said that he commissioned is misleading the House.
Mr Speaker, on page 17, this is what the President said 6:35 p.m.
“The Sustainable Rural Water and Sanitation Project and the Water Supply Improvement Project of the Ghana-Spain Debt Swap Development Programme have been completed. In September 2020, I joined the people of Amedzofe, Ziope, Akpokope/ Batume Junction, Matse, Dzolo Gbogame, and surrounding communities to commission the five (5) Piped Water Supply Systems under the Project.”
Mr Speaker, with respect to my Colleague, he says that he spoke to some MPs concerned and this is not true. If he contends that this is not true and that the President by saying that he commissioned this Ghana-Spain Debt Programme -- that he did not
Mr Bedzrah 6:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am the MP for the area -- Dzolo Gbogame, Amedzofe.
Mr Speaker, we have 11 communities under the Ghana- Spanish Debt Swap. He said the Ghana-Spanish Debt Swap has been completed. [Interruption] -- He said he commissioned five and completed all. That is what he said. We are telling you that even the one at Sogakope has not been completed. About six of them have not been completed. Only five have been commissioned. That is exactly what my Colleague is saying. So he is not wrong. He is telling the truth on the ground.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr Afenyo-Markin 6:35 p.m.
Mr Speaker, let us be fair to the facts. We do not need to unduly disrupt debate but facts are sacred; facts are facts. I am not against him saying that others have not been completed because it is a matter of fact. What my Colleague said is different from the intervention from the MP for the
area. He said that what the President has said is not true. The President was specific that he has done five and the Hon Member is saying something different.
Hon Chiwitey did not say what you have just said else I would not have gotten up. Even in the next paragraph, the President said that concrete preparatory works are underway in the Yendi Water and Tamale Water Projects. Then, Hon Chiwitey gets up and says that the man has lied that he has completed the Tamale and Yendi Water Projects, meanwhile the paragraph is there. He should refer to it. He should not mislead this House. It is a House of records.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:35 p.m.
Hon Member, just conclude, your time was almost up.
Mr Chiwitey 6:45 p.m.
I am most grateful, Mr Speaker.
Mr Speaker, I was just on the coastal management issue. Permit me to read this statement:
“Mr. Speaker, in the area of coastal management, we continue to improve the resilience of the country's coastline against tidal wave
erosion that poses a significant threat to lives, livelihoods and properties of the people living along the coastline. Consequently, we have implemented a number of coastal protection works at Aboadze, Nkontompo, Adjoa, Blekusu, Elmina, Dansoman, Amanful Kumah, Dixcove, Axim, Cape Coast, Komenda, Anomabu and Ningo-Prampram...”
Mr Speaker, the former Minister for Works and Housing, Hon Samuel Atta Akyea, is here. All these projects that have been mentioned were started long ago. When they came to power, the former Minister and the Committee on Works and Housing visited those places. As we speak, the state of the projects is still the same.
Mr Speaker, the President failed to even tell us the percentages of the levels of work. He just made an open statement. What are the levels of work at Nkontompo, Amanful Kumah, Dixcove, Axim and Cape Coast? The President should have told us --
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:45 p.m.
Hon Member, your time is up.
Mr Chiwitey 6:45 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I am most grateful. [Interruption]
Mr Samuel Atta Akyea 6:45 p.m.
On a point of order. Mr Speaker, if you would permit me, let the records reflect that it is not every tidal wave activity and the protection thereof that was done by the NDC Government. They did their part and we continued. This is the decency that we should secure, but to say that every coastal protection that has been done so far has not been implemented by us -- [Interruption] -- these are hard stuff. With your permission, I beg to quote:
Consequently, we have implemented a number of coastal protection works at Aboadze, Nkontompo, Adjoa, Blekusu, Elmina, Dansoman, Amanful Kumah, Dixcove, Axim, Cape Coast, Komenda, Anomabu and Ningo-Prampram.”
Mr Speaker, I must concede with the greatest of respect, some of these coastal protection works were done by the NDC Government. For example, I can mention about four of them: Aboadze, Nkontompo, Adjoa and Blekusu. That is the essence of article 35 -- continuity. [Interruption] -- No, he did not give credit to anybody; he was being fair.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:45 p.m.
Hon Member, thank you for your intervention.
Mr Afenyo-Markin 6:45 p.m.
Mr Speaker, with respect, is the name of the Hon Member you just mentioned the last on the list?
Mr Speaker, we would like Hon Sylvester Tetteh to take his turn in the absence of the Hon Colleague.
Mr Sylvester Tetteh (NPP -- Bortiano/Ngleshie Amanfro) 6:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, thank you for the opportunity. The Hon Member spoke about the coastal projects. I come from Ningo, but I am the Hon Member of Parliament for Bortiano/ Ngleshie Amanfro and I know of the project which was started in 2018 under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. So, the records are there for all of us to see.
Mr Speaker, the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo yesterday, discharged a constitutional obligation to this august House. I must say that the President was apt, straight forward, and honest to the good people of this country. He gave a vivid description in the state of affairs of our country. He spoke about the happenings of our country and everything that ought to be mentioned.
Mr Speaker, the President told us the state of our economy as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. He told us that revenue was affected. In the same vein expenditure has also gone up because of the numerous interventions Government had to do.
If we pull the combined effects of revenue shortfalls and the expenditure, it is about 6.6 per cent of our GDP. That places the biggest obligation on the President and the Government to ensure that we take measures to ensure that we bring the economy back to life. But before then, there were numerous interventions that the Government had taken to ensure that we stay safe and to keep the economy afloat.
Mr Speaker, it was not only goodies to the good people of this country as has been enumerated by various Hon Members on our Side. Most importantly, it is about the business interventions, especially GH¢2 billion for the big business sector, especially the pharmaceutical industries and that culminated into Ghana manufacturing most of the PPEs that were used to combat COVID-19 in this country.
In doing so, the Bank of Ghana has also provided some interventions to aid the Government to keep afloat.
On page 4, paragraph 2 of the SONA, Mr Speaker, with your permission, I beg to read:
“Support has also been forthcoming from the Bank of Ghana, under its brilliant leadership, which has lowered the Monetary Policy Rate by 150 basis points to 14.5 per cent, reduced the Primary Reserve Requirement from 10 per cent to 8 per cent.
Mr Speaker, these are things that help the private sector or business community to do their businesses.
Mr Speaker, again, on page 16 of the SONA, I would want to talk about youth development of our country. Whatever the President has said or has been doing, we cannot - It starts from page 15, but let us go to page 16 which talks about youth development in our country.
In the phase of all these, the NPP Administration has kept faith with the young people of our country with significant infrastructure that I have never seen before in the history of this country in the area of youth development.
Mr Speaker, we promised that we would develop the young people of this country. Significantly, we are constructing 10 Youth Resource Centres across the country which are at different levels of construction between 85 per cent and 95 per cent in all the 10 regions.

When you go to Adaklu in the Volta Region, Koforidua in the Eastern Region; Axim in the Western Region; Azumah Nelson Sports Complex in the Greater Accra Region; Nyinahin in the Ashanti Region; Dunkwa-Offin, in the Central Region; Yendi in the Northern Region. Most importantly, before the end of the President's first term, a sod was also cut at Dambai to commence the construction of same facility in the newly created six regions of our country.

Mr Speaker, for me, it is not just a football pitch or a stadium that is being constructed, but a state of the art Youth Resource Centre, where we would have all facilities, including an eight-lane running track across this country. Hitherto, we have not had the opportunity for a running track apart from those in Accra, Takoradi or Kumasi, but today, by the kind leadership of the President of the Republic, we are going to have these facilities in all the 16 regions of our country.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 6:55 p.m.
Thank you very much, Hon Member.
Finally, I would invite the Hon Kobena Woyome.
Mr Kobena Mensah Woyome (NDC--South Tongu) 6:55 p.m.
Mr Speaker, I rise to contribute to the Motion on the Floor that this honourable House thanks H. E. the President for the Message on the State of the Nation, which was ably moved by the Hon Patrick Yaw Boamah.
Mr Speaker, we are always given this assignment to debate the SONA, year in year out, and consistently, if one goes through most of the submissions for the years 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and now 2021, one would realise that there has been some repetitions and subtractions, but really on the ground, the results are not evident for us to see.
Mr Speaker, once again, we are debating a Message in which one would attest to one particular fact that yes, this same issue has resonated. I would want to cite an example by quoting from just one of them, for instance, the 2019 SONA, which was ably delivered by H. E. the President, and I would take you to page three, paragraph four.
Mr Kobena Mensah Woyome (NDC--South Tongu) 7:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, on that page, the President assured this House that in order to rapidly and equitably develop the entire country, he was going to ensure that an amount of US$1 million or its equivalent in Ghana cedis was going to be allocated to each constituency.
Therefore, all the 275 constituencies in the country were supposed to receive some fair share of development as a result of the use of that money. We were all happy. Our constituents across the nation jubilated and thought that they were going to notice some appreciable development in their communities, but what do we see today?
Mr Speaker, there is nothing to write home about, and I cite my constituency as an example, where one is unable to point to any project to indicate that this is what has been done with our share of the amount of US$1 million or its cedi equivalent as was promised in that Message on the State of the Nation by the President.
Mr Speaker, another issue was deliberated upon on this floor a number of times, and it had to do with the way waivers of taxes and exemptions were being done, to the extent that, our Side always had the
cause to think that they ought to be scrutinised, and probably reduced, but the Majority Side always had their way because that was what they had been whipped to do.
Mr Speaker, H. E. the President in the same SONA had the cause to lament to this nation through this august House, and I would refer to page 6 of the 2019 SONA, paragraphs three, four and five.
Mr Speaker, with your permission, I would read some portions of page 6, paragraph three, which says:

“Mr Speaker, revenue mobilization poses the biggest challenge in the management of our economy, with the tax exemption policy in particular proving to be an Achilles heels, and a growing menace to fiscal stability and revenue generation. In the last eight years, tax exemptions in respect of import duty, import VAT, NHIL and domestic VAT have grown from GH¢392 million, that is 0.6 per cent of GDP in 2010 to GH¢4.66 billion, that is 1.6 per cent of GDP in 2018.”

His Excellency the President went ahead with the lamentation to say that:

“These figures do not include exemptions from the payment of corporate and individual income taxes, concessions on tax rates, petroleum tax reliefs, customs tax exemptions enjoyed by diplomatic missions, and waiver of processing charges at the ports.”
Mr Speaker, the next paragraph says 7:05 p.m.
“If we continue at this rate, in less than sixteen years, half of Ghana's revenue base will be given away as tax exemptions.”
Mr Speaker, this is a genuine lamentation. I have listened to His Excellency the President who is in charge of the state coffers and knows everything and should be able to tell us what the issues and problems are. So, the state of the nation at the time and per his decisions, plans and strategies to curb this, have not seen any significant approach from the other Side where we were promised that there would be some Bills brought here for us to look at; there would be some activities in that regard et cetera
-- policy directions -- but ever since 2019 to date, we have approved and continue to approve exemptions in this House.
Our Side would always say no, but the Majority Side would always say this is what it is; that is the way forward. One in particular which I always have a problem with has to do with the One District One Factory the (1D1F) policy exemptions. Sometimes, when you look at the companies that are registered under the 1D1F and what they intend to do, and are given the blanket cheque and they do not pay duty, it is an issue.
Again, when we listen to such statements, what then do we say? Obviously, these are just talk shops; they are just wishful thoughts from His Excellency the President which would definitely yield no result.
rose
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:05 p.m.
Hon Member, hold on.
Yes, Hon Member for Ejisu?
Mr Kumah 7:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Member is misleading the House with some information -- [Interruption]. Mr Speaker, in relative terms, the amount of tax exemptions have declined significantly. So, it is wrong for the Hon Member
Mr Avedzi 7:05 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the Hon Member cannot interrupt the debate without making reference to the Standing Order under which he came. He cannot just stand up and start to talk. We should learn; we are all learning here. Under which Standing Order did he interrupt the Hon Member? He should tell us.
Mr Woyome 7:05 p.m.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for coming to my rescue, and the fact still remains that we need to walk the talk. Here, we need to really walk the talk. The President and the Government for that matter need to walk the talk that we have come most of the time to listen to such lofty and wonderful ideas, and the State of the Nation Address as is usually given, but always, we are not sure about the results.
Mr Speaker, now we look at the comment His Excellency the President made about chieftaincy and may I refer to paragraph 2 on page 16, line 8 in particular where he said:
“Government is also determined to provide the funding necessary for the Judicial Committees of the various Houses of Chiefs to
be able to do their work effectively and efficiently, so as to bring closure to many longstanding chieftaincy disputes.”
Mr Speaker, these are repetitions without results. In 2017 and 2018, there was mention of this; in 2019, there was a mention and in 2020 -- Mr Speaker, if you look at all this, the issue is this: You would notice that various budget allocations to the particular Ministry for them to undertake these assignments have been wanting. They are not given adequate resources to enable them carry out this simple assignment.
If you watch carefully, clearly, it is true that these disputes, when left unattended to, gradually, shift into a national security problem, and they are dotted around the entire country. We have visited a number of such houses, and I have actually looked at most of these cases; it takes only resource allocation.
We have spoken to past Hon Ministers as well as the Minister for Finance and have made various cases for this particular Ministry. You would notice that they always find space in their SONA and Budget Statements but are not given a pragmatic approach in terms of helping to solve this problem.
We have also noticed that the composition of the Judicial Committee requires some addition and therefore, there is the need for an amendment to the law establishing them so that they can deliver on their mandate.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:05 p.m.
Hon Member, be winding up.
Mr Woyome 7:05 p.m.
That again goes to the Executive without much being done about it. Mr Speaker, that is something we need to look at and when they feature in our SONAs, we need to take them seriously.
Mr Speaker, you would notice that there is a whole lot that faces the sports industry, and I would have wished that His Excellency the President would have found it necessary to also make mention of those particular activities, and getting the Legislative Instrument to Act 934, which is the Sports Law and then Act 939, the National Youth Authority Act pushed in order to give them focus and get them do what they are mandated to do by law. So that, at least, they can achieve results and then predictability in terms of what they are supposed to do can be measured.
That I would have been happy to see, but then, given what he said, the All Africa Games in 2023 is very
important. I was happy to hear what he said, but the issue is this: we are late in many of the fronts, and there was the need for him to run some with speed to get the organisation of the event going smoothly.
Mr Speaker, while ending, Act 934 requires that the Ministry biannually organises sport conferences where think tanks in the industry are brought together to discuss sports and see the impediments and challenges and the way forward. Currently, we are very much aware of the effect of COVID- 19 on sports.
I thought His Excellency the President would have mentioned this as a matter of urgency to bring sportsmen and women together to discuss sports and see how we would develop it within the environment we find ourselves -- the pandemic has struck the industry so hard. That again is missing from the President's Address, and that is a worrying situation.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:05 p.m.
Hon Member, your time is up.
Mr Woyome 7:05 p.m.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. [Hear! Hear!]
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:15 p.m.
Hon Members, the debate on this
PAPERS 7:15 p.m.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:15 p.m.
Leadership, any indication?
Mr Afenyo-Markin 7:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, Hon Members are encouraged to come in their numbers and continue with the debate tomorrow. We agreed to start at 10 a. m. I think that we had a good day today, which has been very engaging and we have to continue in that spirit tomorrow.
Mr Speaker, we are in your hands.
Mr Avedzi 7:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, we agreed to have an extended Sitting and as usual, when we have an extended Sitting, the Majority knows what to do. Today, however, we are not getting that provision. The time is past 6.00 p.m. and we cannot work from 10 o'clock in the morning to this time -- So, they should just take note and do the right thing tomorrow.
Mr Afenyo-Markin 7:15 p.m.
Mr Speaker, the information is that something was done but not as adequately as expected, so the needful shall be done. The Hon Deputy Minority Leader should be rest assured.
Mr Second Deputy Speaker 7:15 p.m.
Hon Members, the House is accordingly adjourned till Thursday, 11th March, 2021 at 10 o'clock in the forenoon.
I thank you very much.
ADJOURNMENT 7:15 p.m.