- “Over the past four years, Ofori-Atta has had a few run-ins with the members of the minority. We should expect that there will be some serious questioning on the various parts of the budget. The reasons and justifications for the new taxes are going to be legitimate questions."
An Economist at the University of Ghana Business School, Dr Patrick Opoku Asuming, has advised Finance Minister-designate, Ken Ofori-Atta, to brace up for “tough vetting” today in Parliament.
“Certainly, it will be a tough vetting,” Asuming told Beatrice Adu on Asaase Radio’s The Big Bulletin.
According to him, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs on the committee see it as payback time after clashing with the minister-designate on a few issues during Akufo-Addo’s first term.
He said budget related issues likely to feature at the vetting includes introduction of new taxes.
“Over the past four years, Ofori-Atta has had a few run-ins with the members of the minority. We should expect that there will be some serious questioning on the various parts of the budget. The reasons and justifications for the new taxes are going to be legitimate questions.
“One that I’m hoping will come up is why we are introducing some levies to deal with excess capacity charges when only less than two years ago we’ve reduced electricity tariffs. We can all expect a very lively conversation,” the senior lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School said.
Ofori-Atta is the only minister nominee of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who is yet to be vetted.
Ofori-Atta was originally scheduled for vetting on 8 March but had to be postponed due to ill-health following a post-COVID-19 recovery complications.
He spent about 30 days at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, USA, where he received specialised treatment for post COVID-19 complications.
As a result, the 2021 Budget Statement of government was presented by Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Leader of Government Business in Parliament.
All of President Akufo-Addo’s substantive ministers of state and regional ministers have been vetted and sworn into office following parliamentary approval.
What to expect
Ofori-Atta’s vetting session by the Appointments Committee of Parliament is expected to be dominated by the banking sector clean up that took place during the first term administration of President Akufo-Addo under his watch as Finance Minister.
Also, matters surrounding the Agyapa Gold Royalties deal, a policy of the Akufo-Addo government that became heavily politicised last year prior to the 7 December 2020 elections will come up.
Most anticipated vetting
It is the most anticipated vetting of Akufo-Addo’s current administration after the nearly seven-hour vetting of Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame.
Ordinarily, Ofori-Atta’s vetting is expected to be even longer. However, because he is still on the road to recovery, the committee members are expected to ask all the tough questions but within a time that will show sensitivity to the health condition of the minister-designate.
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