The True State of the Nation, 2014 by the Minority in Parliament
Source: parliament_of_ghana
Date: 2014-03

THE TRUE STATE OF THE NATION, 2014 BY THE MINORITY IN PARLIAMENT APRIL 2014 Fellow Ghanaians, on February 25, 2014 His Excellency John Dramani Mahama came to Parliament and addressed the nation on what he considered as the State of the Nation. The State of a nation is “the condition, situation or set of circumstances that pertains at a given time” (Ref. Chambers 21% Century Dictionary) in this case, the present condition or situation of Ghana and measures that are to be taken to advance the cause of the State over one year. Whereas a President’s delivery of the message on the State of the Nation is an obligation imposed by Article 67 of the constitution, it is Article 34(2) of the constitution that provides for the contents of the message which should capture the policy objectives of chapter 6 of the constitution. These are in the areas of political, economic, social, educational, cultural and international objectives. In particular, the address, according to Article 34(2), must relate to the __ state of steps being-taken-in-respect-of basic human rights; a healthy economy, the right fo worlg————w- the right to good health care and the right to education. It is in these areas that we will analyze the President’s speech, delivered on February 25, 2014. But before we proceed it is important to make preliminary observations: Five of them, we intend to make. ) ¥ First, there are three arms of government: The Executive, the legislature and Judiciary. The President in his delivery spoke about two of the arms of government but did not have one sentence or even a4 word for (he Judiciary. That is a sad commentary. After the oversight has been acknowledged, space has been created for two sentences to be inserted on the judiciary, Is it the case that official documents are doctored? Are we revisiting the era of the infamous “page 28”7 v Second, the constitution in chapter 20 deals with decentralization. The conduct of District Assembly elections as captured by Atticle 246 is a critical undertaking in the composition of the MMDAs. Elections at that level are due this year. Four years ago, the conduct of the elections became very epileptic. At the time of the President’s message, the Electoral Commission had sounded that the elections might have to be postponed indefinitely because of non-release of funds to start the registration of potential new voters, The President had no word on this and the nation was put in a quandary. v" Third, the Statistical Service estimates that four (4) years after the last population and housing census which put our population figures at 24.6million at thai time, our population today is in the region of 27.2million using an annual growth rate of 2.5%. So if the President uses a population figure of 24million as he did in his State of the Nation Address his planning would be wrong. Not planning for over 3million human lives “cach one deserving access to the basic necessities of life”, to borrow from the President’s own words, could only end in a disaster for the nation. " The fourth observation is the admission by the President that Free Senior High education is possible in Ghana in a year from now. Ghanaians should be happy with this. It is good that the very person who less than 14 months ago categorically stated that the scheme was not going to be possible anytime soon, should be the same person now saying it is possible and it will soon come. God bless our homeland Ghana and help us to identify characters of untruth from characters of truthfulness. v The fifth point, the President spoke about commencing some projects which however are not captured in the 2014 budget. Is the nation to expect another over expenditure spree, when the effect of the events of 2012 are still rampaging? The Econonry The preamble of the President’s address restates the 4 thematic areas of the NDCs 2012 Manifesto and which were captured in the introduction of the 2013 message by the President, and these are: 1. Putting People First; 2. A Strong and Resilient Economy; 3. Expanding Infrastructure and 4. Transparent and Accountable Governance. Let us first speak to the economy. The President stated on page 9 of his message “Our economic fundamentals remain sound and our mid-term prospects are good.” He buttressed his point with statistics on economic growth. Assuming that economic growth rate alone constitutes economic fundamentals, let me give you the historical figures to enable you make your own judgment about the President’s characterization of the current state of the economy. In 2000 the GPD growth rate inherited by Kufuor was 3.7%. In 2001, the GDP grew at 4.2%. In 2002 it grew at 4.5%; tising to 5.2% in 2003 and to 5.6% in 2004. It rose to 5.9% in 2005; 6.4% in 2006; 6.3% in 2007 and to 8,4% in 2008. All this was without the benefit of crude oil exports. The rebasing of the cconomy only started in 2008. This is how a sound economic growth aggregate really looks like. Now compare the Kufuor administration’s sustained and consistent growth rates with the rates since 2009 under Mills and Mahama. In 2009 the economy slackened from the 2008 level of 8.4% to 4.0%. It rose to 5.9% in 2010 and to 14.4% in 2011 with about 7% due to oil. In comparable non-oil growth rate the economy really shrank to about 7.4% in 2011 and even with oil it shrank further to 7.1% in 2012. In 2013 the estimated 7.4% GDP growth rate is being revised downwards and the non-oil growth rate shrank even more to 5.8% and it is expected to shrink again in 2014, If the checkered, non-steady, shrinking economic growth rates are what the President referred to as sound economic fundamentals then we wonder where he learnt this bogus economics analysis fiom since he characterized this section of the address as a lecture in €CONOIMICS. If on the other hand the President really was refemring to the full set of economic aggregates that constitute what is properly called economic fundamentals then please listen to these facts. The cedi is now selling at GHg 2.8=$1 and continues to fall at an accelerated rate. In fact it has depreciated by as much as 17.6% in the first quarter alone this year compared with a depreciation of 1.1% in the same quarter last year. It is very conceivable that at the rate at which the cedi is depreciating we will hit $1 to GI¢ 3 by the end of the second quarter. Interest rate is now hovering around 30%; our gross reserves in months of imports have dwindled to 2.6 months of imports and continues to dwindle; our trade deficit is well over $4billion; the fiscal deficit was 11.8% of GDP in 2012 and 10.8% in 2013 or about e GH¢12billion, our_current account defieit is 12.8% or $5.7billion (GH¢14:8billion); it was $4.9 or GHg¢12.7billion in 2012, This is the first time in a long period that we have had a twin current account deficit and budget deficit twice in a row; public debt stock is now GH¢55.6 billion up from GH¢51.6billion in December 2013 which is well over GHg2.00 per every Ghanaian, old or young. Again it means that we are borrowing at the rate of GHS 2 billion a month; the debt to GDP ratio is well above 57%; inflation is above 14% and no longer single digit. Compatriots, the evidence of the true state of the economy can be found in our everyday lives: in the markets, in our residences, in the workplaces, in the industries and in the streets. The cost of doing business has sky-rocketed and this has impacted negatively on employment in both formal and informal sectors. The high cost of living is exacting its toll on all of us and it is no wonder that public sector workers are agitating for pay rise from government. Standard of living is falling, life is becoming unbearable and our people are getting poorer. Public financing is out of control and to state that the economy is in trouble is a huge understatement. Ladies and gentlemen this is the horrifying state of the economy. The economic fundamentals are hopeless and cannot be described as sound by any stretch of imagination. 1 will now describe some of these fundamental indicators in more detail. Lublic Debt Ladies and gentlemen, what are the causes of the sharp decline in the cconomic circumnstances of our people? First is the Huge Public Debt. The Mills-Mahama administration inherited a total public debt of US$8billion (paragraph 94 of the 2009 budget statement), the equivalent of GH¢9.5 billion (or ¢95 trillion) at the beginning of 2009. That figure translated to 33% of GDP in the then non-rebased economy. Within 5 years this debt has escalated to over GHg¢55.6billion (or ¢556trillion) which is more than four times or indeed 485% increase in debt stock over 5 years. This debt stock is equivalent to about 58% of our rebased GDP. Indications are that by the end of 2014 the figure will reach 60%, that is, if we do not change course in our economic management. If the public debt reaches the 60% threshold it would be unsustainable. The piling up of such debts simply means that every year, from 2009 to 2013, the NDC-led government has on the average, added, GI1¢8.1billion to our public debt. The public debt of GHg9.5billion or ¢95trillion meant that at the end of 2008 every Ghanaian owed GH¢422.22 or GHg4.2million. The public debt of GIH¢55.6billion or GHg556trillion cedis now means every Ghanaian including babies who have been just born as I speak now owes GHg¢2,100.00 or ¢2Imillion, Certainly, this is a reflection of the poor quality of economic management. Sad to observe, that over 48.5% of the debt was borrowed locally. This means that government has been competing with the private sector for money domestically. The effect of this is the rise in interest rates which makes it harder for domestic businesses to grow and create jobs. The huge number of our youth roaming the streets without jobs and the multitude lining our roads selling ————dog-chains-and-chewing gum in-the-intensity-of the sun, should indicate to us the colossal figures of the unemployed. It is sad to relate that it is the youth who are now unemployed who will be required to pay this debt sometime in the future. Unfortunately, fellow Ghanaians, there is not much to show for all these huge loans contracted. Not much productive investment. What has registered strongly, however, is the dubious payments to Woyome, Isofoton, Construction Pioneers, Waterville and other cronies of the establishment. That is the real state of the nation, Since 2009, this government has resorted to sheer propaganda in their choreographed effort to portray that they are better managers of the economy. The GDP growth figures point in | another direction for, since 2009, the non-oil sector growth rate has never matched the GDP growth rate recorded in 2008 which was 8.4%. In 2013, economic growth in countries in West Afiica most of which are non-oil producing averaged 6.7% and the countries are Gambia, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Ghana’s non-oil sector was projected to grow by 5.8% (see pe.11 par 28 of 2014 budget). Reality check indicates that this figure will be reviewed downwards. Of the 10 Primary and Secondary criteria of economic growth established for countries in the WAMZ, Ghana placed last in the league of countries such as The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Iiberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone as we were the only country to have attained only 3 of the 10 criteria in the course of the year. Indeed, by December 2013 we had even slipped on “exchange rate stability” and, possibly, “real interest rate” and hence at the close of 2013 we met only one of the 10 criteria. That represents the worst performance by Ghana in over 20 years. (See page 13 par 34 of 2014 budget). Instead of addressing the real causes the President told Ghanaians that the couniry has caught the bug of “the 2007 world financial crisis™ and “the recent tapering policy announced by the US Federal Reserve”. Ladies and gentlemen, for 2011 when GDP growth rate hit 14.4% and both the Finance Minister and the President came to Parliament beating their chests for what they called “prudent economic management” which had resulted in “unprecedented GDP growth rate” they made no reference to the 2007 world financial crisis. The then President was most ! expressive comparing figures with countries in the West Aftica Monetary Zone. Today, ow President instead of admitting to their manifest incompetence in managing the economy is rather referring to events in the USA, Russia, Turkey, Portugal and Greece. The President must be | candid with Ghanaians! i Tiscal Deficit, Arrears, Interest Payment i Fellow Ghanaians, indiscipline in government expenditure which reached unprecedented levels resulting in huge fiscal deficit of about 11% of GDP and the excessive arreass in 2013 is one of the reasons why our currency is suffering. How much is still owed to Cocobod, SSNIT, GETFund, DACF, NHIS, Road Fund, Road contractors, and Parliament among others? We expected the President to have proposed remedial measures to stop the huge unbudgeted : expenditures by the Ministries, departments and agencies, including government machinery. . Instead; he went-to-catalogne huge projecis some of which are not budged for in-2014-The —-. -~ conventional wisdom is “one bitten twice shy” but the President wants Ghanaians to be three times bitten. Undoubtedly, the huge borrowings translate into high debt servicing and the payment of huge interest every year. If loans that are contracted are invested in ventures that could yield good dividends that position the country to be able to pay back in due time, nobody should worry. However, where it is difficult to account for monies borrowed, as the case in many of the project loans suggests, then the good people of this country should have cause to worry, That is why Ghanaians should worry about the GHg¢6.2billion which may, in all likelihood, be required to service our debt for 2014 even though there is very little to show for these loans. It is incredulous that the response of the President to the massive borrowing, as he stated at Kibi the other Wednesday, is that he will continue to borrow. Regardless of how such borrowing imperils i the economy and ultimately affect the living-standards of the people negatively, Mr. President? It is clear that the President and his economic management team simply do not understand the repercussions of their unbridied appetite for borrowing. In the meantime, whiles the President insists that he will continue to borrow, his Finance Minister on 1% April 2014 came to Parliament 10 tell Ghanaians that from now onwards, there is a moratorium on new loans, Or was it an April Fools day joke? Perhaps yes, otherwise is it not paradoxical that on the day that the Minister was promising a freeze on new loans, on that same day the Minister was seeking approval for a $300m loan for military logistics and another huge amount for the construction of a new seaport. A team of confusionists leading the country! DEPRECYATION OF THE CEDI It is important to remind President John Mahama of what he said in 2008 when he was the running mate to the then NDC Presidential candidate John Evans Atta-Mills. Ife accused President Kufuor’s NPP government of excessive borrowing amounting to $4.7billion and accused them of making life unbearable with their massive borrowing. Today life is far worse under John Mahama. The difficulties facing the economy are reflecting in the weakening of the local currency, the Ghana Cedi. Government is quick to point to the Single Spine Salary Structure as the key cause citing ridiculous figures of between 75% - 85% of total revenue generated, depending on the colour of the person making the statement, as the portion of revenue which is taken up by the SSSS. Yet the truth is that government expenditure on salaries does not exceed 60% of revenue. Indeed, last Tuesday, April 2004 the Minister of Finance admitted that for 2013 the percentage was 57% of revenue. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, speaking at a forum in London about four weeks ago conceded that they got the caloulations wrong at the very outset of the implementation of the single spine salary scheme. When did they discover this? Was it before or after the bold declaration by the then Minister responsible for Employment in November 2010 that “government is ready with the meal and every Department or agency that is ready should bring its plate to be served™. Questions that must be asked include the following: what is the projection of our international reserves by year ending 2014 having decreased from $5.35billion to $5.21billion as at September 2013 which provided for 2.9 months of import cover (Par. 74 of 2014 Budget). According to the Governor of the Bank of Ghana as at February 2014 it had decreased further to $4.88billion which provides for 2.7months of import cover. More frighteningly, the net reserves are estimated at 2weeks of import cover. Is the reserve big enough to provide muscle to the Bunk of Ghana to intervene to shore-up the cedi? What has been the effect of the knee-jerk measures announced by the Bank of Ghana to slow down the depreciation of the cedi, such that the Ghana Cedi continues to cascade downwards with the passage of every day? The President ought to have opened up on this. Statistics indicate that over 95 per cent of Ghanaians are religious and believe in the power of prayers. Most belicvers today however acknowledge that the era of manna falling from heaven is over and that today, as the Book of Proverbs provides, “we eat from our labour”. Christians believe that “whatever a man soweth is what he reapeth”. If you sow thorns you reap thorns. If we manage our economy well we will teap good harvest and so if we pray we must pray to the Good Lord to provide our leaders with knowledge and wisdom to manage well and not for God to help us reap sugar cane when we sow cassava. It is in this vein that we must lament the fate of Ghana for, at the time when some developing countries are planning to visit the moon and other planets, the managers of our economy postulate that we are having difficulties because we are approaching end times; or that the causes of our socio-economic problems could be found in the springing up of high-rise buildings or that our economic woes and the depreciation of the cedi are attributable to the works of dwarfs and spirits. That is the level of intellectual incompetence of the people at the helm of affairs..... Mr. President the fault is not in our stars, it is in the level of understanding of the real causes of these difficulties by the managers of the economy. INFLATION Over the past five years, government’s propaganda machine has been in overdrive in cheering government for achieving single digit inflation instead of confronting the practical challenges facing Ghanaians. Since August 2013 the rate of inflation has continued to rise from 11.5% to 14.0% in January 2014 far higher than the government’s own upper band target of 11.5%. To stem the inflationary spiral the Bank of Ghana recently increased the policy rate by 200 basis point. At the same time as the “yos men” and “cheer leaders” of government had become loudest the Bank of Ghana’s Monetary Policy Committee came out with reports indicating the increasing levels of interest rates. For instance, the February 2013 report and the 2014 budget (par. 63) indicated the following developments in interest rates: e The 91-day Treasury bill rose from 10.7 per cent in December 2011 to 22.4 per cent in June 2012 and to 23.1 per cent in December 2012. As of September 2013, the 91-day Treasury bill rate was 23.1 per cent. Last Thursday, the Bank of Ghana revealed that as at February 2014 the 91-day bill had risen to 23.5 per cent. o The 182-day bill increased from 11.1 per cent in December 2011 to 22.0 per cent in June and further increased to 22.7 per cent in December 2012. As of September 2013, the 182-day Treasury bill rate was 22.9 per cent. As of September 2013 the 182-day Treasury bill rate was 22.9 per cent. It dipped to 18.7% as of December 2013 but has risen by February 2014 to 21.2 per cent. o The l-year fixed not went up from 11.3 per cent in December 2011 to 22 per cent in June and then to 22.9 per cent in December 2012. As at December 2013 the 1-year fixed note had declined to 17.0% per cent. As at February 2014 it has risen again to 22.5 per cent. The question we posed then was, how come that a time inflation was supposedly dropping into single digits, interest rates were doubling over a period of just twelve months. It was strange that at a time that inflation was in single digit lending rates had shot up to over 28%. Tt was for that reason that we have always urged government to stop the cheap single digit inflation propaganda, stop the unbridled, often unnecessary and unreasonable borrowing from the domestic market and let interest rates climb down so that businesses can borrow, grow and create jobs. Sad to say that the President has categorically stated that his government will borrow more. The future of industry can only be bleak. OLD WINE IN NEW BOTTLE, 1t would be recalled, ladies and gentlemen, that in seconding the motion for adjournment after the President’s delivery, the Minority Leader said that many of the things His Fxcellency had recounted were a rehash of the 2013 message. The rehash in itself would not be bad if the purpose was to restate to account for progress in those matters. Not so, the President’s statement. In many cases when he restated the old matters he made them appear as if they were completely new things. Indeed, there are some of them though which had either not started at all or whose implementation had become so saddled by sheer incompetence that in order to avoid embarrassment, the President did not even mention them in his speech. EDUCATION Fellow Ghanaians, if we intend to put people first as the President categorically stated then Education should be a paramount concern. The President at Page 4 of his speech posited that his focus is on quality, access and affordability. The issues of ‘access’ and ‘affordability” arecovered 1 Article 38(1) & (2) of "the constitutton, — ThePresidernt spoke about the constitutional requirement of providing “free, compulsory and universal basic education within 10 years after the coming into being of the constitution”. Well, as is usual, the President got it wrong, The time span for the provision of free, compulsory and universal basic education (FCUBE) is 12 years after the coming into being of the constitution and not 10 years and that is captured in Article 38(2). Indeed, the constitution in Article 38(3) urges the state “to provide equal and balanced access to secondary and other appropriate pre-university education, and equal access to university or equivalent education, with emphasis on science and technology™; as well as (b) “a free adult literacy programme, and a fiee vocational training, rehabilitation and vesettlement of disabled persons,” and (¢) “life-long education” “subject to the availability of resources”. Clearly, therefore, a greater burden is imposed on the state. It is not only for the provision of fiee secondary education. One hopes the President appreciates that. It is also important to remind the President that when the constitution under Article 25(1) makes provision for making “secondary education progressively fiee i.e. available and accessible to all by every appropriate means”, that secondary education includes technical and vocational institutions. It is sad to statc that because vocational institutes come under the purview of the ministry of manpower which ministry is itself not well resourced, vocational institutes have become orphaned establishments. The time has come to place all vocational institutes under the Ministry of Education so that they could also benefit from the resources available to GETFund. SCHOOLS UNDER TREES For three years, since 2012 the NDC has insisted that they have constructed over 1,700 basic schools representing about 40% of the backlog of 4,300 basic schools that needed to be constructed (vef. 2010, 2011, 2012 Budget Statements & Pg. 15 of 2012 Manifesto). We have always insisted and indeed stated in our True State of the Nation Address, 2013 that out of the total they claim to have constructed about 700 had been initialed between 2007 — 2008 by the | Kufuor administration and that what they have done is about 950 over 4 years. For four years they have been in denial of this fact. Indeed, their 2012 manifesto has repeated that lie. The good thing is that for the first time they have admitted that over 5 years they build only 983 units (Ref. par.644 of 2014 budget). Truth cannot be eternally suppressed! The President now states that the total number of schools under trees is or was 2,269 and not 4,300! And that what number is yet to be constructed is 1,286, The nation should prepare itself for another lie in purported achievement next year. Well we are told that for 2014 the Ministry of Education plans to construct 190 6-unit classroom blocks under the “schools under trees” project. At this snail pace, in spite of all the noise, Mr. President, when are we going to complete the construction of the remaining 2,600 or, even by your own revised figures, 1,286 schools, given that you have just two more years to end your term? In 2013 the President said 42 per cent of “Schools Under Trees” had been eliminated e {pg 14902013 budget). In 2014 he said he has eliminated 43 3:per-cent~{pgl26-0£-2044- - - budget) translating into 1.3 per cent improvement over one year. That is some achievement, Mr. President! QUALITY EDUCATION As part of improving the quality of education, the President in 2013 assured to integrate Kindergarten (KG) education into the mainstream system. Between 2005 and 2008 the Kufuor administration started this effort and included a 2-unit KG block in the basic schools that were constructed at the time. Teachers with the requisite skills were to be trained. Since 2009 the Mills-Mahama government abandoned the idea of integrating X.G education into the mainstream. That is why it was heartwarming hearing the President’s assurance in 2013, yet nothing has happened since then. The new structures that were awarded on contract in 2013 still did not have KG components and the training of such teachers to cater for the kindergarten were not mentioned. For 2014 the President did not offer any clue about the status of the integration effort. The 2008 NDC manifesto stated that the school-feeding program, which the Mills- Mahama administration inherited would be expanded to cover all basic schools in 4 years i.e. beginning 2009. That promise had, by the end of 2012 not materialized. In 2013 the President shifled the goal post and promised that they would expand the school-feeding programme to all public_basic schools in rural communities, significantly, this time, not any longer to all basic schools in the country. Even that, how many public basic schools in how mauy rural communities which had no school-feeding before 2013 benefitted in 2013? No indication because, apparently, nothing happened. The President assured to bring the Bill for the university in the Eastern Region to Parliament in the third quarter of 2013. No such bill came and no such bill has come. Whilst we recognize that the President’s promise to have one state university established in each region is in fulfillment of Article 38(1) which provides: “The State shall provide educational facilities at all levels and in all the regions of Ghana...”, great care must be taken not to create any mushroom institutions whose products may turn out to be misfits or not be recognized by the establishment because of low standards in those institutions. Compatriots, the regions that do not have state universities have good reason to expect the establishment of such institutions in their respective regions, however, we must learn useful lessons from our sister country, Nigeria, which at the height of the oil boom established universities in all the then 32 states of the federation. Today many of them have become glorified polytechnics and post-secondary institutions of no proper description and some of them keep changing their names as if the mere change of name may change the fortunes of those institutions. Let us first ensure that the two recently established universities in the Volta and Brong Ahafo regions are put on sound pedestals. We should not turn the establishment of public ot state universities into political gamesmanship or fashion parade, Mr. President. We appreciate the concern of Mr, President to ensure an increase in the number of trained teachers. However, we disagree with his prescription to ameliorate the situation. Cancelling the scholarship to teacher-trainees limits government’s authority to bond and keep the trainees in the classroom. There ought to be a rethink of this policy, We need to further expand the facilities in the 38 colleges to rapidly increase intake of the students than we have done before. At a point in our national life when it was thought we had rolled out sufficient number of teachers from the 4- year post-elementary and the 3-year Post-Secondary institutions, many of the Iraining Colleges in existence at the time were converted into secondary schools. Not many of them after all these years have been able to match the standards of the traditional secondary schools. Ultimately, we may have to increase the number of Training Colleges to match our increasing population. And may we state for the records that there are too many reports of newly passed out teachers who are not being paid on timely basis, sometimes, regrettably, for more than one year, It provides no motivation for the newly-trained teacher and the Ministry has to find a lasting solution. HEALTH On health the President stated that his government has a “vision to extend quality health care to all our people...This involves the construction of new facilities and the training of health personnel”. That is a declaration of good intent. When health personnel are trained they have to attend to patients, There have been too many hiccups in the relationship between the members of the Ghana Medical Association and government. In the past, there have been fiictions but previous governments had always had a way to deal with the practitioners. Increasingly, the relationship between the Association and this government appears to be worsening thereby negatively affecting the health of the people. The President is the Chief Executive of this country and he must devise the appropriate conflict-resolution mechanism to deal with this as it seems the posturing of the negotiators have not been the best required to deal with the problems. One would have thought that the President would have spared a thought for this perennial problem: it is affecting the state of our health and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals. CAPITATION PROGRAM IN ASHANTI Ladies and gentlemen, facilitating financial access to health care to Ghanaians has since independence been a major headache for our government. In the “cash and carry” regime out-of- pocket expenditure of health carc by the sick was catastrophic and that is why Ghanaians heaved a sigh of relief when the National Health Insurance Scheme was introduced by the Kufuor administration and became operational in 2003. In 2000 before the introduction of the NHIS out-of-pocket expenditure as a percentage of Total Health Expenditure was 47%. Between 2005 - 2008 the national out-of-pocket expenditure ebbed to 33.7%. Today, in 2013 the national average is 36% per capita health expenditure. implementations of the NIIS introduced a capitation regime in Ashanti Region. The capitation system is Ashanti has dramatically shot up the out-of-pocket expenditure of residents in Ashanti Region to 64%, neaily two fold or 100% increase over the national average. This means that the people in Ashanti Region are being impoverished and this cannot continue. Besides, a National Health Insurance scheme is supposed to put all subscribers in one loop and that is why the practice of the capitation system only in the Ashanti region, is discriminatory and hence offends Article 17(1)(2) & (4)(d) of the national conslitution. Mr. President, if the capitation is worth its introduction, it must be extended to all regions of the country. However, if, as we have surmised, it is negative in its effect and will further burden the people as it has done in Ashanti, then it must be terminated forthwith. KINTAMPO RURAL HEALTH TRAINING INSTITUTE Last year the President said that his government was going to transform the Kintampo Rural Health Training Institute into a untversity college. Nothing has thus far happened and the President found it unworthy to report on this to the nation. HIV/AIDS Last year the President said that 220,000 persons who have been identified as persons with HIV/AIDS were to be enrolled on NIHIS free of charge. We did not hear of any effort pursuant to fhis in 2014. What is the status of this otherwise well-infentioned project the President found it unworthy to report to the nation? Last year the President indicated that 625,000 expectant mothers were targeted to be tested for HIV/AIDS last year. How many were tested? Were there any challenges? Mr. promising President, no show on that one too, 11 REGIQNAL HOSPITALS/CHIPS COMPOUND Last year President Mahama promised of the construction of 1,600 CHIPS compounds in 4 years. The budget statement for 2013 provided for 19 of the compounds and for 2014, 25 have been provided for, How it is intended to construct the remaining 1,556 in 2 years only God knows! In the meantime, the nation awaits how much the President and his Ministers® voluntary pay cut has yielded and when they intend to construct the other compounds additional to the 1600. i Last year, the President pledged to commence work on 12 District hospitals and also begin wotk on some regional hospitals. According to the President it was in fulfillment of his Putting People First agenda. Ladies and gentlemen, government has decided to construct 600-bed capacity Regional _..._Jmspilals_'EhALis_lmldablLbut_the_natian_sh@uld._alwys_beuefn_fxomfvaluemfmxmoney_m—¥ whatever enterprise we commit ourselves to and that is why it is very worrying what is coming up as the cost of the upgrading and rehabilitation of the Ridge Hospital in Accra. We are told that the Hospital when completed will cost the nation US$6,757 per square meter thereby making it the most expensive hospital in the world. Crown Agents who were employed by the state to do due diligence has advised that the facility could be built at a cost of $162million and yet we are having to do it at over $305million? That we could make a minimum saving of about $142million. Crown Agents further advised that the Contract Agreement is “likely to expose the Ministry of Health to an unacceptable level of risk”. They concluded that the proposed price of $305million “cannot offer value for money to the tax-payers of Ghana”, We in the NPP parliamentary caucus insist this matter has o be brought back to Parliament for further interrogation. There will have to be a motion of rescission to allow for a reconsideration of the matter. This agreement cannot be allowed to stand. The nation is being short-changed and Parliament must rise up in unison to confront this apparent malfeasance. What is even more worrying is the fact that the MOH after their attention had been drawn to this impropriety went into negotiations with the contactor, Bouygues Batiment Tnternational. Arising out of the so-called negotiations the MOH requested a 10% discount — which would have amounted to $30million even though Crown Agents had stated a downward review of the contract sum by $142million. The Ministry itself in entering into the negotiation had proposed a review downwards by $88.25million from the initial $142 million proposed by Crown Agents. At the end of the supposed negotiation, the Ministry agreed with the contractor to a 6% discount! That amounts to $27million. Even that the contractor indicated that thexe would not be any refund but that it will be applied to additional works! M. President, that is the state of our nation! FOOD AND AGRIC 12 Last year, we said the true state of food, agriculture and cocoa subsector is one of stagnation. Real growth in agriculture consistently spiraled downwards from 7.4% in 2008 to 0.8% in 2011 and even today, when government is making noise about a resurrection, it is a mere 3.4%. The main reason for the decline of agriculture has been the decline of the share of agriculture in total budgetary allocation. From 3.0% in 2009 it noticeably climbed down to 1.9% in 2012. 1In 2013 it was 1.07%. Add onto this the new tax regime that was introduced to negatively affect machetes, fertilizers, other farming equipments, fishing nets and premix fuel. The result of this is reduced food security for the country and low productivity resulting in low income for farmers. FOOD Last year we related to the stagnation of growth in the production of basic food staples (cereals, legumes, roots and tubers). The huge yearly fluctuations in output and the rising 2011 and over 600 metric tonnes in 2013 and for which we spent $374million (ref. pg.11 of Address), provide ample testimony to deepened food insecurity in the country. Admittedly, there has been a steady growth in the roots and tubers sub-sector, attributable to the continuation of the policy initiatives introduced by the NPP administration since 2005. TFISHERIES AND MEAT PRODUCTION In respect of the production of meat and fish which constitutes by far, the chunk of protein intake by Ghanaians one can only make the same observation which we made last year. Production of meat and fish has not witnessed much growth which explains why, correspondingly, there has been a steady increase in the importation of livestock and poultry products: from 128,000 metric tonnes in 2008 to about 139,000 metric tonnes in 2011 and now, in 2013 the nation spent $170million on imported poultry and $283million on imported fish. All this is inspite of the heavy penalties that importers of meat and fish have to pay. To demonstrate how serious government is in pouliry farming, for 2013 the Ministry of Agriculture raised and distributed 8000 cockerels to 500 farmers — so each poultry farmer had 16 cockerels! In 2009 the NDC government established the Local Premix Committee (LPC) to facilitate what they called “a fairer distribution of premix fuel to fishermen”. Today, there are reports of persistent shortages of premix in virtually all the fishing communities. That is quite aside the fact that the price of premix fuel, fishing nets, outboard motors and wooden canoes have all steeply gone up. The combined effect of these is the deepening of poverty levels within the fishing communities of the country. COCOA AFFAIRS Ladies and gentlemen, two months ago when we engaged the media on the price of cocoa we related to government’s controversial decision not to increase the price paid to cocoa farmers in the current 2013/14 cocoa season. Government’s position has been that there has been a decline in the price of cocoa on the international market. We stated then and we do now reiterate that if for nothing at all the sharp devaluation of the Ghana Cedi (more than 20%) in 2013 provides a justification to increase the price paid to farmers. In 2012/2013 prices were increased by a mere 5% when domestic inflation reregistered 10%. Today, inflation is 14%. Interest rales are rising, the Ghana cedi’s depreciation has not been mitigated inspite of the panic measures announced by the Bank of Ghana and inflation which already is 14% is likely to rise further in the coming months, Already this year, just 3 months into the year the cedi has further depreciated by about 17% since December, 2013. The tumbling of the cedi has thrown the policy of government to pay a minimum of 70% - of the FOB price out-of gear;Today; the FOB price of cocoa is $2;700permetric tommeAs we """ . speak today, the dollar to the cedi rate is GH¢2.85 to $1.00. The equivalent of the FOB price in local currency is GH¢7,695 per metric tonne and therefore the current price paid to the farmer of GH¢3,392 per tonne is equivalent to only 44.0 percent. In other words, the current price is far less than the 70% which NDC promised cocoa farmers in both 2008 and 2012 presidential and general elections and which figure finds expression in both the 2008 and 2012 manifestos of the NDC. Whilst government has purposed not to increase the local price of cocoa the price of imported farming inputs such as fertilizers, insecticides, pesticides, weedicites, fishing nets, outboard motors, and farming equipment are all going up. Labour cost is also sky-rocketing. As if these travails are not biting enough, government has not responded to the issue of the payment of bonuses to cocoa farmers which has not been done over the past three years. Farmers have become severely imperiled. Mr. President, the farmers of this country deserve greater respect than you have accorded them. If farmers are shabbily treated, if they are cheated they may engage in smuggling and the nation will not have the full benefit of our production especially in these days when the country needs every single dollar or foreign currency. CONCLUSION ON AGRIC, FOOD SECURITY AND INDUSTRY In the 2008 manifesto of the NDC they gave a firm pledge to Ghanaians that by the end of 2012 they would have modernized agriculture in order to assure “food security for the people and dependable raw materials for industry”. Nothing close to these have been achieved. That is the state of the nation, Mx. President. TRADE, INDUSTRY AND MANUFACTURING In 2011 trade deficit registered US$3.1billion. In 2012 the deficit was $4.2billion. In 2013 merchandise export was at $13.8billion while total merchandise imports amounted to $17.6billion. Our balance of wrade which is in the negative, at about $4.0billion, is indeed the result of indiscriminate imports. The worsening balance of trade position contributed to the massive current account deficit of $5.7billion in 2013 and the colossal depreciation of the cedi from GH¢1.10 to $1.1 in December 2008 to GH¢1.98 in December 2012 and further to GH¢2.80 in March 2014, DOMESTIC TRADE The free fall of the cedi has resulted in overexposure of local traders who are left unable to protect their working capital. Many Ghanaian retailers have been forced to close their shops because they are operating at a loss. The situation has been further aggravated by the invasion of foreigners in local trade. We made this observation last year and we reiterate the point because, toady, the situation has worsened. The huge cost of transportation as a result of frequent increases in the price of petroleum products, six times Jast year and already two times this year, has occasioned a huge price differential between the farm gates and the markets in the cities. These are matters that government has to intervene in a positive way, Mr. President. MANUFACTURING Since 2008 the manufacturing sector has not performed well, The share of manutacturing of GDP fell from 6.9% in 2009 to 6.7% in 2011. In 2012 the share of manufacturing to industrial sector declined from 17% in 2011 to 5.0% in 2012 and to 2.5% in 2013, This is attributable partly to the power crisis of 2012 and which, as we speak today, has not abated inspite of the numerous explanations and assurances. Ladies and gentlemen, the bane of industry are legion: First is the lack of access to long term credit. The second is the lack of access to even short term credit from the banks because of excessive government borrowing from the banks. Third, is the erratic nature of utility supplies to industry. Fourth is the huge taxes imposed on industry, which to a large measure, is already under performing. It is important, by way of flashing back, fo state that the northern region is still awaiting the 50,000 metric tonne capacity sheanut processing factory promised in both the 2010 and 2011 budget statements. The President knows that the $11million facility which has been installed is inappropriate. The revival of CEDECOM, the serious capitation of SADA, the integrated development of the bauxite deposit at Kyebi and iron-ore at Oppong-Manse, the industrial salt complex at Keta all promised in the 2010 and 2011 budgets have all turned out to be a mirage, empty promises. In the meantime, the President last year promised to review Ghana’s tax structure to reduce taxes paid by manufacturers. e promised to establish an Industrial Development Fund; provide serviced plots for the development of industrial zones; complete work on the Nyankrom Fertilizer plant. The President, as is usual of him, provided no update on these. Today, many industries have to resort to private generators to provide electricity to their businesses. This is making industrial production uncompetitive. The President knows this. What is his programme of action? Today, tanker services provide some industries and households with water and he had the courage to refer to ‘Kufuor gallons’ to describe a phenomenon of acute water shortage occurring under his watch. Today, manufacturers in Ghana have to pay tax rate of about 35%. How do we make made in Ghana goods, which the President declares to promote, competitive? If the President i seriously minded to promote local manufacturers he should look at the burdensome tax regime that is suffocating local industry and rather broaden the net with lesser tax burdens. The display by the President to promote Made-in-Ghana goods by naming some local enterprises on the face of it appears commendable. However, there are subsisting suspicions and perceptions out there that there are some businessmen who are being targeted for certain commissions -~ which are familiar to and engaged in by many practitioners — because they are suspected to be supporting opposition parties. Now, if that is true it will represent a throw back into the dark ages of the PNDC when it was decreed that Ghanaians should not buy APINO soap, chicken from Darko Farms or paper from Dr. Addison’s factory because the owners would use their profits to fund opposition activities. If there is a practice in industry which is inimical and hence must be confronted and decapitated then all who are suspected to have engaged in the act must be dealt with. If a couple of suspected persons are singled out, it gives cause for people to raise issues of selective justice. SADA The Savanna Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) is a mere rechristening of the Northern Development Authority concept which was conceived by President Kufuor. It is a vehicle which if better administered could facilitate the transformation of the northern region and thereby profoundly affect the standard of living of the people in the area. It is a tragedy that it has been reduced to lip service. In 2013, on SADA, the President promised to establish a shea nut factory at Buipe; A vegetable oil mill at Tamale, a rice processing mill at Nyankpala and continue the planting of 5 milfion trees, Not long after his delivery the Minority came out with an exposure of improprieties in SADA. The President failed to mention the various agric-processing plants and the SADA program. Against the backdrop of the massive corruption and fraudulent deals in the program in 16 both 2012 and 2013 the President should have been bolder and tougher on the commissions within SADA. Not surprisingly, the President indicated his spinelessness. JOB CREATION The right to work, according to Article 24(1) of the Constitution is a fundamental human right and that is why the work programme of government, the budget, must seek to address this. We must concede realistically though that as a nation we are miles away from affording this right to every Ghanaian. Notwithstanding, it is important that we focus aftention and effort to address this phenomenon. The NDC in the 2008 electioneering campaign assured to apply state machinery and resources to create jobs for the people, particularly the youth. Their strategic objective was to provide every Ghanaian with a job from which they could earn their livelihood (pg. 60 of 2008 Manifesto). In a country where the combined sirength of workers on government pay-roll is about 750,000, the NDC propagandists and misinformation Ministers claimed that they had by 2010 created 1.5million jobs. The budgets of 2011 and 2012 indicated a total job creation of 120,000. That figure of 1.5million job creation could only come from persons who insist that when their followers see a sheep they have to exclaim that they have seen a cow. Exploiting President Nkrumah’s “work and happiness” slogan the NDC declared to launch an Dmployment policy to reduce unemployment to the barest minimum. Today unemployment has tisen shatply, no thanks to the high cost of doing business in Ghana, the “durmso, dumso”, the erratic water and other utilities supply and the ever increasing petroleum products prices, many people have been thrown out of employment because industry has become restive and is not doing well. 2012 as in 2008 the NDC has promised to launch a major housing and public works scheme involving urban roads, drainage construction and environmental sanitation. The President repeated the initiation of such huge projects in his State of the Nation Address to generate employment. Ladies and gentlemen, what is the nation to make of this policy and its gargantuan projects when 40days after the President came to rejterate his social contract with Ghanaians the same President through his Minister of Finance comes to tell the nation that no new coutracts will be awarded for 2014, Need we remind the President that one of their pet projects to provide jobs to the youth, the hyped STX Housing Project remains a mirage. The nation is yet to know how much went into that ill-fated project against the backdrop of conflicting accounts by various personalities who have been made ministers of Works and Housing. Tt was the President himself who led the pation to the STX journey-of-no-return. He led the nation to bit the “nail into the coffin’ of the STX scheme as President Mills prophetically stated. The nation awaits the President fo set up 17 another sole-commissioner to delve into the STX mystery. We said so to him last year and we repeat same today. HOUSING AND POTABLE WATER The 2012 NDC Manifesto has this bold provision: “With an accumulated national (housing) backlog estimated at 1,5million housing units which is increasing at an annual rate of over 100,000 units in both rural and wrban communities, the need for an accelerated construction of housing units in all settlements is an imperative”. That is a laudable statement. However what concrete measures to be employed to address the problem is what remains tnclear in the manifesto. In 2008 they promised a housing policy and strategy to focus on five arcas: i National Human Settlement Policy and Strategy il. Housing Shelter Strategy ili. Urban Development iv. Shum Upgrading and prevention, and V. Rural Housing Pive years on, these promises have turned out to be empty promises. The result is that the housing deficit has worsened and today the deficit has moved from [.2million in 2008 to 1.7million. That is why the lack of clarity and direction or bold measures to tackle the problem head-on is unacceptable. Perhaps, the NDC has not yet recovered from the failure of the STX housing deal and hence have thus far been unable to generate fresh and better alternatives to the housing problem. In spite of the assorted and conflicting excuses offered, the NDC government, after five years has not been able to complete and commission a single unit out of the 5200 affordable housing units started under the Kufuor administration. It was the tax-payers money that was used to commence the construction and therefore it is an insensitive waste of public resources if government has after all these years not been able to complete 5200 housing units most of which were near completion when the NDC assumed power. Since the issues which we raised last year have gone unheeded we may wish to reiterate them for emphasis. A good housing delivery system has three features: i A well-defined Policy framework, ii. Implementation system and strategies, and ifi, Funding sources The Mills-Mahama administration has shown a lack of policy direction or absence of any clear strategy and no indication of funding sources to solve or even ameliorate the housing deficit. In the meantime, the following indicators point to the pitiable state of the housing sector: An estimated housing deficit of 1.7million units with a projected annual increase of 100,000 units. The horrible spectre of 50% of Ghanaians living in sub-standard houses in our rural areas and in the deprived inner city dwellings and other unsuitable structures including kiosks and containers. Tnability to provide undisputed land titles to private developers. Local Private Estate developers are not incentivized to partner government in delivering houses even though we spread out the red carpet to STX, a foreign company. Neither the central government through its agencies or departments like the District Assemblies are participating-in the-delivery of rental units and this is leading to high —~ rents for the poor and vulnerable in society. The over concentration of private housing estates in Accra and Kumasi, leading to spatial confusion. Absence of support infrastructure like roads, potable water, drainage, fixed telephone lines, reliable electricity supply etc. in our rural aveas and even in the inner city slums. Mr. President, that is the state of our housing. Nothing to write home about! In their 2012 Manifesto (Pg.58) the NDC has pledged to “make more interventions in the next four years with the goal of attaining ‘Water for Al by 2020. “They have promised to “accelerate the provision of affordable and safe water in the urbanities through: a) Mobilization of funds for the construction of new, and the rehabilitation and expansion of existing water treatment plants; b) The establishment of a “Water Fund” to support the implementation of a pro-poor water pricing regime. Further, the NDC has pledged to drill 20,000 boreholes nationwide to serve the rural communities, Accra and indeed the entire nation in 2013 faced one of its worst water crisis. As we have said earlier, the President had the ‘courage’ to tell Ghanaians that people were fetching water with “Kufuor gallons™ as if to tell Ghanaians that he was not responsible, it was Kufuor who was 19 responsible for the water shortages of 2013. The Accra water supply is plagued by inefficiency and not enough investment in the Mills-Mahama administration. The NDC in 2009 promised to drill 20,000 boreholes nationwide. In 2010 when the project had not taken off they then said the 20,000 would have been provided by 2012. in 2011 only 400 had been sunk. Unashamedly, the 2012 manifesto repeats the same 20,000 borehole to be provided by the close of 2016, As we speak today, after S years only 1,115 out of 20,000 boreholes have been drilled amounting to 5.6% completion rate in five years! That is the level of efficiency of the Mahama administration. Increasingly and manifestly, there is a growing overdependence on factory purified water by most residents with serious financial consequences for low income groups. Mr. President, that is the state of water usage in the country. There is a yeal threat of an outbreak of water-boyne diseases like cholera especially in the very poor comniinities. Because of the non-release of funds to the Assemblies there is serious sanitation crisis in all the major cities in the country and the situation is grossly compounded by the lack of running water in many communities. Many of the rural and small water schemes have stalled because of funding difficulties. Finally, no serious attention is being paid to the ever increasing pollution and destruction of our river bodies and water sources. ROADS AND TRANSPORT In the period between 2009-2013 the country’s road network suffered the worst maintenance in the history of the nation. Three features characterized our road maintenance: i. poor quality ii. Very slow-paced and iii. Untimely intervention. The combined effect of these was the rapid deterioration of our roads. Stretches of our roads have become bedeviled with (a) potholes; (b) very bushy roadsides which reduce the safety of both the motoring public and pedestrians and which also lead to carly failure of the road margins; and (c) severely and dangerously corrugated gravel surfaces which affect the travelling comfort of ruralites and adversely affect their social and economic activities with consequential increases in poverty levels especially in the rural communities. Undoubtedly, the poor roads which leads to high vehicular wear and tear coupled with increasing fuel costs due primarily to the persistent depreciation of the Ghana Cedi has resulted in high transportation cost which affect the prices of goods, including foodstuff on the market. Such roads of vital economic importance as the Bunso Junction — Koforidua-Mamfe, Tarkwa-Ayamfuri-Dunkwa-Obuasi-Anwiankwanta, Anyinam-Kwabeng, Brekum-Drobo, Adamsu-Zezera, Bolga-Bawlku, Wa-Nandom-Hamile, Navrongo-Tumu-Wa are all in very deplorable states as a result of delayed maintenance. Delays in the payment of contractors and the resort to sole-sourcing in road contract awards arc matters that are negatively affecting the health of our roads. That is the state of owr roads. Pretty soon we shall strand out the pertinent matters relating to the roads sector in order to expose the rot in the system. THE ENERGY CRISIS Late 2007 and early 2008 when the country had problems with power generation, atiributable primarily to the low levels of water in the Akosombo dam at that time due to severe draught, the NDC insisted that they “would ensurc the supply of power on a reliable and sustainable basis” if they were elected into office. They pledged “to ensure the delivery of energy services to all consumers_in a secure, efficient, reliable, sustainable, safe and environmentally-friendly manner™, Five years on, they have not delivered on their promises and the energy sector is in crisis. The problems in the energy sector are self-inflicted and ensue from indecisions and not- well-thought-through policies of government. The resolution of these problems is within the competence and control of government and VRA. The latter have not kept up their capacity expansion and government has not sufficiently resourced VRA to procure crude oil to propel electric power generation. Till date government is hugely indebted to the Bulk Oil Distribution Companies which debt is destabilizing the BDC and also deepening the risk exposure of the Commercial banks in the country. BOST is in dire straits and the country’s strategic oil reserves has about evaporated into thin air. Under President Kufuor the country’s strategic oil reserves could hold for 3months. On monthly basis the country has to experience fuel price increases because of the ever depreciating Ghana cedi and not because of world price increases. The fate of Tema Oil Refinery is still hanging and even though the Bui Dam has been commissioned it has run into problems. About 25% of electricity generated in lost because ECG transmission network is in a terrible state of disrepair. ECG needs about $700million investment. Government is not assisting, but government owes ECG hugely. In the meantime, ECG loses over $110million yearly due to poor transmission. The thermal plants at Takoradi, in particular the T3 plant has run into technical problems arising out of contractual disagreements between VRA and the Canadian Contractors on the project. The T1 plant has also not worked effectively and efficiently over the past two (2) years. 21 | i i Ladies and gentlemen, the problems in the energy sector are legion and the net effect is the continuation of the “dumso™ “dumso™ affliction with its consequences on almost every facet of our soci0-economic life. We shall return to this topic in the next few weeks. TRANSPARENCY & ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNANCE Generally speaking, access to relevant information relating to various aspects of our national democratic governance is still very difficult. People in authority still feel very reluctant and uneasy release basic information. Often times they are simply afraid of repercussions of vindictiveness. That is unhelpful to transparency and accountability in good governance. Parliament which is the prime institution charged with this function cannot act because resources and their releases from the Ministry of Finance to the institution are neither adequate nor timeou: In the event, committees cannot work effectively. In contemporary times 2013 was the waorst year, the “annus hotribulus™ for Parliament in ferms of releases and times of releases. That stalled the work of Parliament. Indeed for 2013 Parliament merely survived. Fellow Ghanaians, we all know that as regards corruption, many committees have been established and several reports have been written. But what evidence exists to show that the state has benefited from such measures? Negligible. For, quite apart from what revelations that the Minority in Parliament has often done not too many people, with the possible exclusion of the former Attorney-General, Martin Amidu, have shown concen about the massive graft and corruption that has become the order of the day. The difficulties that the nation is going through are due to many factors including especially massive corruption, wastage and maladministration, pure and simple, Whilst we are at this it is important to indicate that four motions have been filed pursuant to transparency and accountability in our governance: 1. First is in respect of the arrest and detention of one person who was responsible for an aspect of security at our airport; 2. The second relates to the fire outbreak at some markets and work places for which both the President, the NDC National Chairman and other NDC apologists had pointed accusing fingers at opposition elements; 3. Third is in respect of the sale and purchase of Merchant Bank; 4. Fourth is the termination of capitation grant in Ashanti Region and 5. Fifth is the motion of rescission in respect of the Ridge Hospital upgrading. These motions have not been articulated on the floor. The only motion which has been somewhat heard is the Capitation one, but even that one had fo be dressed in borrowed robes before it was admitted to be debated. These motions relate to providing sunshine or illumination at otherwise dark places. Parliament must be afforded space in pursuit of any endeavour that opens up governance and society, otherwise, it may promote doubts, and rumour mongering. The nation does not need to be cast back into the Acheamponic era of rumour mongering. Those of us in the NPP Minority caucus arc purposed to delve into these matters especially the circumstances surrounding the sale and purchase of Merchant Bank and the unrealistic cost of the Ridge Hospital upgrading. We will not rest until we have come to the bottom of these matters. Already, we have hanging the matters relating to the purchase of the Bmbraer planes for the military in respect of which the late President Mills caused the setting up of an investigative committee. Mr. President, what has happened to that Committee on the Embraer purchases! And the loss incurred by the State in the matter of the STX housing scheme? Mr. President you promised to retrieve whatever the nation lost. Where are we on that? LAW AND JUSTICE Article 34(2) obligates the President to use the medium of his Address to report to Parliament about steps he has taken to ensure the realization of basic human rights. In that respect one would want to-know-the state-of human rights. Again;-it is important to recount-what we stated last year in respect of matters that ave still outstanding: 1. Five years ago Agbogloshie experienced bloodletting. NDC supporters and sympathizers went on rampage and butchered persons suspected to be NPP supporters; several others had deep machete wounds. The perpetrators are holding their chests and heads out at Agbogbloshie. The police requested and were given the identities of the alleged offenders. Not one person has been apprehended, five years after the incident. 2. Communal violence erupted at Gushiegu and some neighbouring communities following after the December 2008 elections. The violence involved NDC and NPP supporters and, subsequently, suspects who belonged to the two political persuasions were arrested. Less than one week after the arrest some of the suspects were released. All who were released are all NDC supporters and the remaining who were detained and have been goaled are all NPP supporters. 3. In the bye electioneering campaign at Chereponi which ensued after the transition of Hon. Doris Seidu, a seat-of-government operative shot five NPP supporters at point blank. But for the presence of Prof. Frimpong Boateng who performed surgery on them to remove the bullets from their bodies at Yendi Hospital, lives might have been lost. The person who engaged in that heinous crime and who was caught on video in the act has not been arrested, four years after the incident. 4, In the conduct of outstanding lections in seven polling stations at Akwatia in 2009 NPP Members of Parliament and NPP supporters were attacked and brutalized. Many NPP MPs including Hon. Tsaac Osei, Elizabeth Agyeman and my humble sclf, without any provocation had their vehicles vandalized. As we speak today, more than four years after the dastardly incidents, not a single arrest has been made. Yet the incidents occurred in the presence of security personnel. 5. In the bye-elections at Atiwa a vehicle drove through a crowd many of whom, according to the Attorney-General, were innocent by standers on that day of elections. The woman who caused that crime has not been apprehended and she has been rewarded with a public office. 6. On February 19, 2013 a mushroom group calling itself Coalition of Ghanaian Voters demonstrated against what they described as the disrespectful attitude of the Minotity in Parliament. Earlier on January 8, 2013 the police had blocked an advertised demonstration by the Young Patriots. The same police would not allow an indoor activity by the Let My Vote Count Alliance. 7. In many parts of the country foreigners have invaded and arc engaged in illegal mining activities. The foreigners shoot and maim Ghanaians. They deforest and degrade lands and pollute water bodies and poison the environment. In many cases the security agencies protect the foreigners against the citizens. This is the state of human rights, ladies and gentlemen. ; THE JUDICYARY The present state of the judiciary as compared with the year before remains as follows: i 1. There is a lack of logistics to facilitate the dispensation of justice 2. The tedious recording process even at the Supreme Court which the nation witnessed at the hearing of the Election Petition last year did not provide a good advertisement to the advancement of due process in the country. 3. The Commercial and Fast Track divisions of the High Court do not have ICT equipment to ensure the speedy disposal of cases and hence investor-confidence is dampened. 4. The budget of the Judiciaty is woefully inadequate and this has led to a situation where some basic allowances of Judicial Service Staff including judges are not paid on time. The recent slash in the emolument of judges is a disincentive and may possibly lead to compromising the delivery of justice. 5. Judges have to put up with a state that is unwilling to prosecute criminals but the same state shows a speedily enthusiasm to apprehend perceived opposition “offenders” only to abandon them in the hands of the Gestapo-like security inslitutions. 6. Record keeping in the Courts, as became evident in the Election Petition case, has not benefited from modern technology. 7. Court houses in the districts are in a real state of disrepair. 24 8. Court staff are not properly motivated, the workplaces are often not conducive, their basic working tools are lacking and their morale is low. M. President, the nation is not giving proper and adequate attention to its Judiciary, the arm of government that is charged with the maintenance of law and order, protecting human rights and liberties of the populace. In such a situation democracy and the rule of law could easily be compromised. SAVE QUR SPORTS Regarding sports, Ghana is now running a Ministry of Football instead of Ministry of Youth and Sports. The paltry sum of GHg¢3.3million allocated fo the thirty-three Associations under the National Sports Authority is not released to them for their activities. The National Spotts Authority is dying due to lack of funds. This is against the backdrop that this year we are expected to compete at the ECOWAS Games in La Cote d’Ivoire and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and to prepare for the Olympic Games in Brazil in 2016. This is a sector riddled with scandals, over expenditure and empty promises. As we speak, we are yet to be told of the full story of the Maputo Probe and associated scandals arising out of the All Africa Games in 2011 in Maputo, Mozambique. We have used good money which could have been spent on sports to pay doubtful and dubious debts to Waterville Woyome, Isofoton, Construction Pioneers and contracts of doubtful relevance to the country. The huge promises under the Mills-Mahama Administrations regarding sports have been empty promises. In 2009, Prof. Mills said the NDC government had come to meet the Sports Bill and would endeavour to bring it to Parliament. We are still waiting for this Bill in 2014. He said Cape Coast Stadium will be completed. We are still at the foundation level. The Mahama government is still in the process of acquiring land for the Ho Stadium while the four stadia built for the CAN 2008 are deteriorating because of lack of maintenance and funds. In 2013, President Mahama said in his State of the Nation address that “we will roll out a number of policies to unearth and develop sporting talents {o feed our various National teams. These will include: o Provision of incentives for MMDAs fo establish at least one well-resourced sports and athletics infrastructure in the districts. e Re-invigoration of the traditional inter-schools and colleges sports competitions e Reserve some admissions to Senior High Schools for talented sports and other creative students among other interventions o Completion of the Cape Coast Stadinn as promised by our late President John Evans Atta Mills o Restructuring and re-orientation of the National Sports Authority to enbance its efficiency and effectiveness in the discharge of its mandate. ¢ Development of the lesser known sporting disciplines among others”. In 2014, the President is telling us that Goveriiment has “reviewed drawings of the Sports Arena and Sport Senior High School to be established in the District and Regional capitals, and actual construction work on a selected few is expected to begin as soon as all procurement formalities are completed”, We are tired of these sound bites and public relation gimmicks. Sports is dying and our sports should be saved. The government must as a matter of urgency release funds to the Associations for training, rehabilitation of our facilities and the National Sports Authority. We need massive investment in sports to provide opportunities, avenues for excellence, career development and employment for our youth. CONCLUSION There are some sectors that we have not covered. We intend to strand the relevant issues pertaining to these areas out for address in the coming weeks. We shall provide details about those matters in order to do justice to them. As the President said in his conclusion “Ghana belongs to its people”. When we in the Minority criticize, it is meant to reform and it is not out of “pettiness of politics and the small mindedness of doomsayers (or) a wish for the failure of any action or policy intended to lift Ghana up” as the President alluded tangentially. Mr. President, we agree with you that “Ghana is bigger than any of us”. Without doubt, your Excellency, you will also agree with us, nay, with the generality of the citizenry, that increasingly, there is a growing despondency and mistrust accentuated by cronyism, patronage, unbridled corruption, wastage and maladministration. If this country belongs to all of us, as indeed it does, then all of us must be equally concerned to expose improprieties and malfeasance. As we have acknowledged elsewhere, over 95% of our citizens believe in God. God expecls pragmatism, works, not blind faith and phantasn. Fellow Ghanaians, we feel a sense of responsibility to our nation when by owr conduct and diligent exposures we are able to ensure that the benefits of the enormous resources that God has blessed the Black Star of Africa with are enjoyed by all of her citizens but not only a few. This is our patriotic duty and we will neither renege nor relent. Thank you all very much for your attention and may God continue to help our resolve to contribute to building a prosperous country for ourselves, our children and our children’s children. 26