The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, and other ministers are due to appear before the House to address key issues this week, thus Parliament is anticipated to be quite busy.
Mr Ofori-Atta is due to answer 16 questions from Members of Parliament (MPs) on Friday, June 3, 2022, in addition to being summoned by the Speaker, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, to account for COVID-19 money.
This came after Finance Committee Chairman Kwaku Kwarteng tabled a proposal on Thursday to approve €75 million for the COVID-19 health response initiative (May 26, 2022).
Mr Bagbin pointed out that the House would only accept the loan if the Minister of Finance received detailed information on how prior loans were used.
This is the sixth time the Finance Minister has been summoned by Parliament to attend and offer answers to issues raised on the House floor, but he has failed to do so.
If the Finance Minister fails to appear before the House to answer for how the COVID-19 funds were spent, the Speaker stated Parliament will utilize its powers.
MPs have filed 736 questions, according to the Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, who presented the Business Statement for the week to Parliament last Friday, May 27. He added that since the House returned from recess, MPs have begun filing new questions reflecting the needs of their constituents.
"In light of the foregoing, the Business Committee urges Ministers of State to make every effort to appear before the House to answer questions whenever they are scheduled to do so," he said.
Agriculture, highways, rises in petroleum products, the amount realized from the Eurobond issued in 2021, and if the government wants to seek financial help from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are among the problems that have been raised.
Questions that require immediate attention
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for Wa East, Godfred Seidu Jasaw; the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP for Ablekuma North, Sheila Bartels; the NPP MP for Bortianor-Ngleshie-Amanfro, Sylvester Tetteh; and the NDC MP for Bongo, Edward Abambire Bawa are among those who have asked the Finance Minister urgent questions.
Mr. Jasaw wants to know when the Ministry of Finance would provide the Ministry of Food and Agriculture financial clearance to clear debts owing to partners and suppliers so that discounted fertiliser is available throughout the planting season.
Ms. Bartels' question is to learn from the Finance Minister about the present status of funding for Phase Two of the Tema Motorway, which has been identified as a serious concern for commuters.
Mr Tetteh's question is about the interventions the Ministry of Finance is taking to curb the sustained increases in fuel prices seen in recent pricing windows, while Mr Bawa's question is about what the Ministry of Finance is doing to slow down the increases in petroleum product prices at the pumps due to imposed taxes and levies on petroleum products, as well as the cedi's depreciation.
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