Support govt to grow economy …Majority courts Minority

 The Majority in Parliament has impressed on their colleagues in the Minority to support the government to grow the economy.

According to the caucus, the actions of the Minority has been obstructive especially in an appli­cation for tax waivers for some 42 companies under the One District One Factory Policy.

At a press conference in Ac­cra, yesterday, Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, said the Minority must demonstrate their patriotism by supporting the US$350 million tax waiver request currently before the House.

The Effutu MP fears any further delay in approving the tax waivers for the companies could be detrimental to the Ghanaian econ­omy as the investors may opt out of Ghana for alternatives where the support system would be more favourable.

“We all know that post Covid, the global value chain system has been disrupted and same has been exacerbated by the Russian-Ukraine war.

“There is high competition for investments and various countries are positioning themselves to attract investments and there is no money in the financial sector idling so investors will look at the most attractive destinations.

“Therefore, if the Minority are patriotic, they have to support the government (to approve the tax waivers) because in their era, they supported private sector initiative,” Mr Afenyo-Markin said.

The call by the Majority Leader comes in the wake of a deadlock between the two sides of the legislative assembly over request by government.

Programmed to be taken at the last emergency meeting of the House, a fortnight ago, the ap­proval of the tax waivers hit a snag after a disagreement between the two sides prompting the Speaker to direct further consultations.

The Minority had argued that the waivers were unwarranted espe­cially at a time the country needed those monies to support the econ­omy and further alleged that they were packaged for “cronies” of the government.

In the view of the Majority Leader, the stance taken by the Minority is hypocritical because they granted tax waivers to the tune of US$832 million to the Meridian Port Services (MPS) alone for the expansion of the Tema Port.

Furthermore, Mr Afenyo-Markin said the erstwhile John Mahama regime granted tax waivers to what they termed “strategic invest­ments” without recourse to Parlia­ment, grants he said were “illegal and unconstitutional.”

The request for tax waivers, the Majority Leader argued is to support the government’s vision of an industrialised economy and that anyone who “put stick in the spokes of that agenda” would be hurting the economy.

“President Akufo-Addo’s One District One Factory is for an industrialised economy where Ghanaians would be given the opportunity to do business so that our young graduates would get the opportunity to be employed in the private sector rather than waiting for public sector works,” he stated.

Mr Afenyo-Markin was hope­ful his colleagues in the Minority would come to terms with the Ma­jority to have the approvals given when the House reconvenes from recess in two weeks time.

 BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI

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