News Guide Africa

Tag: Ghana Parliament

  • Two Private Member Bills Submitted to Parliament To Make Substantial Changes To The Public Holiday In Ghana 

     

    Muslims at prayer center

     

     

    Two new private member bills have been submitted to the Clark to Parliament on Wednesday, 29th November, 2023 and currently being processed. 

     

    The Bills include Tashreeq (a day after Eid-al-Adha Festival) and Shaqq (a day before the Eid-al-Fitr) as Public Holidays and provide for related matters. 

     

    The Bills which seeks to amend the Public Holidays Act 2001, Act 601, forms part of efforts to realize the achievement of a more progressive and productive and inclusive society. 

     

    The Public Holidays (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (No.1) has a primary purpose of ensuring effective use of public holidays to ensure productivity seeks to amend the Public Holidays (Amendment) Act, 2001, Act 601, to remove the power of the President to declare additional public holiday, grant authority to the President to merge public holidays, postpone celebration of public holidays on productive days to Friday, remove criminal sanctions for non-observance of public holidays, and provide for related matters.

     

    When passed public holidays that fall on days between Tuesday and Thursday shall be observed on Fridays. A substitute public holiday is an ordinary day that is treated like a public holiday instead of the actual public holiday. The basis for this proposal stems from the fact that productivity may be at its peak in the middle of the working week, say on a Tuesday or Wednesday. 

     

    The proposed amendment also gives relevant power and authority to the President to by Executive Instrument merged in a particular calender year the celebration of any two public holidays in the public interest and in the interest of productivity. 

     

    Currently, by practice, pubic holidays that fall on weekends are not marked as such, but such public holidays are postponed to Mondays, which fall on a working day, which contributes to loss of revenue by the State. By this amendment such practice would be done away with.

     

    Also, the proposal seeks to abolish the regime of criminalizing conducts associated with public holidays by a repeal of the Offences and penalties provisions under section 5 of Act 601.  

     

    “The Public Holidays (Amendment) Bill, 2023 (No.2) seeks to extend the period of public holidays for Muslims from the current one (1) day each to two (2) days for each Islamic festivity”, Hon Francis -Xavier Sosu (ESQ), MP for Madina Constituency said in a statement issued after the submission of the Bills. 

     

    “The amendment seeks to include Tashreeq (a day after Eid-al-Adha Festival) and Shaqq (a day before the Eid-al-Fitr) as Public Holidays and provide for related matters.”

     

    The Deputy Ranking Member , Constitutional Legal And Parliamentary Affairs Committee Of Parliament noted that, “the right of every Ghanaian to freedom of religion is a fundamental one. In Article 21(c) every Ghanian has the freedom to practice any religion and to manifest any religion. Being the 2nd dominant religion in Ghana, Ghanaian Muslims must have equal opportunities when it come to celebration of religious festivals. After 40 days of mandatory religious obligation of fasting, practitioners of Islamic Religion deserve an additional day for rest and to prepare for full activities. 

     

    “As such, the proposed days are the day before the Eid-al-Fitr which is observed by Muslims as the Shaqq day (a day before the end of the holy month of Ramadan in which Muslims mark the end of the fast), and the Tashreeq day (a day after the Eid-al-Adha in which Muslims remember the unwavering trust by Prophet Ibrahim to offer his son as a sacrifice). The religious significance of these holidays is to afford Muslims the opportunity to fully manifest and observe their faith, and offer gratitude to Allah for all that He has done, granted them, and continues to do; as well as for them to fully place and restore their trust in Allah and His abundant care, Grace and wisdom.”   

     

    Article 17(1) of the 1992 Constitution provides that “All persons are equal before the law”, and (2) states that “A person shall not be discriminated against on grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, creed or social or economic status. Also, Article 26(1) states that “All persons shall have the right to freedom to practice any religion and to manifest such practice.” 

     

    Also, Article 2 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights provides that “Every individual shall be entitled to the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed in the present Charter without distinction of any kind such as race, ethnic group, colour, sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion, national and social origin, fortune, birth or other status.”

     

    “Under the current regime, it is unfair, discriminatory, and does not allow for the full manifestation of the Islamic faith by Muslims as enshrined and guaranteed by the 1992 Constitution and other international laws and treaties”, the Human Right Activist juxtaposed. 

     

    When passed, this Act will go a long way to promote religious tolerance and help realize, promote and guarantee a more open, progressive, inclusive and secure society. 

     

    Hon Francis -Xavier Sosu (ESQ)

    MP, Madina Constituency 

    HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER AND ACTIVIST

    DEPUTY RANKING MEMBER, CONSTITUTIONAL LEAGAL AND 

    PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE OF PARLIAMENT 

     

  • ADB with NIB merger: stakeholders slam idea

    ADB with NIB merger: stakeholders slam idea

    ADB and NIB Merger

     

    Adnan Adams Mohammed 

     

    Government’s plan to merger two major state banks National Investment Bank (NIB) and the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB)  have met stiff opposition.

     

    Various stakeholders of the economy disagree with the idea. 

     

    Latest to contribute to the raging debacle is the Head of the Business School at the University of Ghana, who believes the proposed merger would be economically senseless. The government over the years has been holding onto plans to merge ADB and NIB due to the struggles of the two banks.

     

    “You cannot put two big banks together,” he said, adding: “Prudent economic management will not allow merging two state-oriented banks”, Professor Laud Mensah said in an interview last week. 

     

    “Any outcome from the decision-making level is likely to create imbalances in the bank’s balance sheet.”

     

    Professor Mensah called out the finance minister, who is supporting this initiative, to provide a paper indicating the economic value they intend to generate by allowing ADB to acquire NIB.

     

    Additionally, he suggested that external funds would be the best way for an economy to divert.

     

    Professor Mensah stated that if ADB absorbs NIB, their balance sheets would be weakened.

     

    NIB, being cash-trapped, needs an external investor to inject funds into the bank.

     

    Already, the Minority in Parliament has expressed its opposition to the government’s plans to either collapse the National Investment Bank (NIB) or merge it with the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB).

     

    The Spokesperson on Finance, Isaac Adongo, speaking to journalists in Parliament fortnight ago alleged that this plan is merely a smokescreen to sell off the two banks after their merger to government cronies as part of State capture efforts.

     

    “It is clear that this is not about the interest of NIB. This is the last step towards passing through the back door to acquire NIB and ABD for themselves in a state capture,” he said on Thursday, September 28.

     

    The Minority has asked the government to pay the debt owed to the bank and further proscribed measures that will make it viable.

     

    “Government should just restructure the balance sheet of NIB to swap all the NIB debt that it owes to government and give government equity. Government says it doesn’t have money to capitalize the bank, but it has given 500 million debt to NIB, it has given 800 million debt… The two will give you 1.3 billion. It is your money. You owe the bank. The money is already sitting there. Commit to saying that this is my contributing towards capitalisation so that we issue shares to you and move the money to equity.

     

    Hon Adongo said the move by the imminent collapse and subsequent acquisition by ADB will lead to the loss of about 800 jobs.

     

    The MP further indicated that contractors NIB engaged to work on government projects are yet to be paid by the Finance Ministry.

     

    “As a result of that, NIB has incurred GHC1 billion on its loan books, resulting from Ken Ofori-Atta’s refusal to pay, now you say NIB is weak.”

     

    Also, a banking consultant, Dr Richmond Atuahene, has condemned the proposed merger idea. 

     

    “I don’t think merging NIB and ADB is solving any problem, it is not a solution at all,” the Consultant reacted to the government idea. 

     

    He contends that the government should not rush on the matter but take its time to conduct a diagnostic study of the two banks first.

     

    According to him, the NIB has suffered from corporate government crises in addition to its current fiscal challenges noting that the buildup to the current point started in 2016.

     

    He added ADB is also going through the same challenges based on a report published in 2022.

     

    “…ADB does not have the capacity to acquire NIB. He said even if government refinances ADB, it may not be enough to take over NIB’s debts.”

     

    For this reason, he suggested that both banks – NIB and ADB be recapitalised, explaining that “you don’t bring a weak institution to buy a bad institution. You have what we call a good bank buying a bad bank, there is a theory there but the two of them are not good for anything.”

     

     

  • NDC calls on Speaker to allow debate on NPP-cooked GNPC/Genser report

    NDC MPs

     

    Adnan Adams Mohammed

    The Minority in Parliament has called on the Speaker to provide opportunities for the debate of the GNPC/Genser which is currently in the public domain.

     

    The Minority is not in agreement with the misleading information the report has dumped out about the gas sales.

     

    Their grievances was contained in a press statement released today.

     

     

    Read full statement below:

     

    Press Release

     

    For Immediate Release

     

    17th August, 2023

     

    *REPORT ON GENSER/GNPC GAS SALES AGREEMENT*

     

    My attention has been drawn to a report on some social media platforms allegedly signed by the chairman of the committee on Mines and Energy, Hon. Samuel Atta-Akyea on the Gas Sales Agreement (GSA) between Genser Energy and GNPC.

     

    For the avoidance of doubt, I wish to categorically disassociate myself from the content and intents of the said report as it does not accurately reflect my position and that of the minority in its entirety.

     

    Firstly, it is true that I have consistently maintained that the GSA is not fairly priced and will result in significant losses to the state. It cannot therefore be the case that I disagreed with the position of ACEP/Imani that the GSA in its current form will result in huge losses to the state.

     

    More importantly, it is inaccurate to report that the entire membership of the committee disagreed with my position.

     

    More importantly, the said report contains factual inaccuracies and assumptions that do not address the key issues of value for money.

     

    From the evidence, the current Genser/GNPC gas price of US$2.790/mmBTU is far lower than the actual commodity price of US$4.879/mmBTU as approved by the PURC. The critical question the report fails to address is which entity will eventually pay for the price differential of about US$2mmBTU, which runs into billions of cedis over the contract tenure?

     

    It is my hope that the referral by the speaker to the joint committees of the Finance/Mines and Energy will provide the opportunity to address the critical issues as noted.

     

    -Signed-

    John Abdulai Jinapor—MP

    (Ranking Member Mines and Energy Committee)

  • Telcos, BoG to collaborate to retrieve locked funds on MoMo accounts – Ursula

    The Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, has announced that Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are working with the Bank of Ghana to facilitate the retrieval of funds for individuals whose monies are locked up in mobile money accounts.

     

    Numerous subscribers have voiced their concerns regarding the inability to access their funds on mobile money accounts after their SIM cards were deactivated for failing to re-register them.

     

    Providing an update on the status of the SIM re-registration exercise in Parliament on Thursday, June 8, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful assured affected subscribers that while they won’t be able to conduct mobile-related transactions with their deactivated SIMs, their funds will be recovered through the necessary processes.

     

    “We continue to encourage the National Identification Authority (NIA) to assist people to acquire their Ghana Card. We have also been made aware of the difficulties facing subscribers in accessing their funds on their mobile money wallets.

     

    “These subscribers will not be able to transact money mobile-related activities, however, we are working with the Bank of Ghana to ensure that these subscribers are able to retrieve funds upon the presentation of a valid ID and going through the required processes.”

     

  • Muslims Group canvasses political support for MPs sponsoring LGBTQI+ Bill in Ghana

    Muslims Group canvasses political support for MPs sponsoring LGBTQI+ Bill in Ghana

    Read Full Press Release Statement Below:

     

    7th May, 2023

     

    RESOLUTION IN SOLIDARITY WITH CRUSADERS AGAINST LGBTQI+ AND ALL SPONSORS OF THE “PROPER HUMAN SEXUAL RIGHTS AND GHANAIAN FAMILY VALUE BILL-2021”

     

    The Coalition of Muslim Organisations, Ghana(COMOG) wishes to express its resolve to support the crusade against the obnoxious practice of LGBTQI+ in Ghana and by extension the “Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Value Bill” now lying in the parliament of Ghana.

     

    It is worth mentioning that, COMOG is a member of the larger “Coalition on Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Value” which comprises many other faith based institutions working towards the realization of the passage of the Bill, Currently in Parliament.

     

    As a Muslim Organisation with the mandate to protect the sanctity of the religion of Islam, our cultural values and the welfare of our children, we deem it an obligation to work around the clock to ensure that everything legally possible is done to prevent the introduction and practice of gayism, lesbianism and it’s associated activities in Ghana.

     

    In pursuit of this noble agenda, we deem it expedient to support all personalities especially members of parliament, both NDC/NPP who are sponsoring the bill to ensure its passage in the shortest possible time.

     

    On our record, the eight(8) Members of Parliament(MPs) who sponsored the Bill in Parliament and deserve our support are as follows;

     

    1. Hon Samuel Nartey George(Prampram)
    2. Hon. Dela Adjoa Sowah(Kpando)
    3. Hon. Alhassan Suhuyini(Tamale North)
    4. Hon. Emmanuel Bedzrah(Ho West)
    5. Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah(La Dadekotopon)
    6. Hon. Helen Adjoa Ntoso(Krachi West)
    7. Hon. Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor(South Dayi)
    8. Hon. John Ntim Fordjour(Assin South)

     

    It is therefore important to reiterate the point that, the Coalition of Muslim Organisations, Ghana(COMOG) remains non partisan in the politics of Ghana and this sensitization program is only motivated by our resolve to protect the sanctity of our cultural values as Ghanaians and the future of our children.

     

    On this note, we wish to urge all delegates across the political divide(NDC/NPP) to consider the aforementioned interest and elect candidates who will associate themselves to the fight against the act of desecration of our cultural values and belief systems as Ghanaians.

     

    Finally, we remain resolute in the struggle, and wish all Crusaders against the practice and promotion of LGBTQI+ the best of luck. COMOG is ever ready to lend its support to any individual or group in the struggle to ensure that Ghana is rid of this Satanic LGBTQI+ menace. Thank you!

     

    Signed.

    Hajj Abdel Manan Abdel Rahman

    (COMOG President)

  • Ofori-Atta courts Parliament support to facilitate economic recovery

    Adnan Adams Mohammed

     

    The Finance Minister, last week, appealed for the timely and necessary support from the legislative powers of the government to help speed up the economic recovery process.

     

    The investment banker urged Parliament to support the government’s financing requests to ensure a smooth recovery from the present economic challenges.

     

    Presenting the state of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme in Parliament, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the country will recover from the current economic crisis sooner rather than later as indicated by President Akufo-Addo.

     

    “With the successful completion of the DDEP, we believe that with the sustained support of Ghanaians and this august House, we will recover from this economic crisis sooner rather than later as indicated by H.E President Akufo-Addo. I am confident of this, that the Lord who has begun this good work will carry it on to completion as Phil. 1.6”, the minister said.

     

    In his assurance for prudent fiscal management, he noted that the government will implement the necessary fiscal adjustments after the debt operation is completed and present it to Parliament for consideration and approval.

     

    He expressed confidence that with the conclusion of the Domestic Debt Exchange programme the economy will experience stability in the exchange rates, inflation and interest rates, bringing businesses and families some respite.

     

    “We will, therefore, encourage Hon. Members [Parliamentarians] to support the government secure Board approval for the IMF programme to restore macro-economic stability, ensure debt sustainability as well as provide critical social protection for the benefit of Ghanaians.”

     

    The Finance Minister also urged Parliament to pass all the outstanding revenue bills which are necessary for effective Budget Implementation as well as boosting our efforts at increasing our Tax-to-GDP from less than 13% to the sub-Saharan average of 18%.

  • Parliament inundated with tax exemptions agreements – Ato Forson

    Parliament inundated with tax exemptions agreements – Ato Forson

    Adnan Adams Mohammed

     

    The Finance Committee in Parliament is alarmed with the numerous tax exemptions agreements in the country.

     

    According to the immediate past ranking member of the Finance Committee, the country amidst its current economic challenges  need every single Cedi in order to salvage the economy.

     

    The legislator shared that the committee has been resolute in approving tax exemptions as they are becoming too much.

     

    “Yes we have done a lot of work on the tax waivers. We believe that tax exemptions are becoming too much and particularly at a time like this that the country needs every cedi to save our economy you cannot continue granting tax exemptions”, Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minority leader in Parliament told journalist, last week.

     

    “So, you will notice that the finance committee has been very adamant in approving tax exemptions.”

     

    He emphasised that Ghana has made progress in terms of tax exemption.

     

    The Minority leader said: “We worked with the ministry and eventually we led it to get the tax exemption bill passed. So, we have a tax exemption regime in place as a country for the first time as we speak.

     

    “In terms of the savings that the finance committee has led parliament to save in terms of tax exemption if you quantify it with our report, you will notice that we have made huge progress as a country in terms of tax exemption.”

     

    The Majority leader Osei-Kyei-Mensah Bonsu has however acceded to the Minority leader’s comments stressing that the tax waivers were not helping the country’s situation.

     

    “A lot of people were also taking advantage of that regime to seek tax waivers that were not really helping the country.

     

    “Having said that, this is the reason why we have introduced this tax exemption Act. So, from now on it is going to be the guiding principle,” the Majority leader stated.

     

    He further indicated “the difficulty now is we are somehow standing, imports that were occasioned especially those of the 1D1F they are here the imports have arrived and it was predicated on the old regime.

     

    “Now, if you want to benchmark on the new law it becomes a difficulty”.