Thursday, 27 February

What is gov't doing with the revenue left behind? – Minority asks

Politics
Stephen Amoah, Nyieso MP and Deputy Minster for Finance

The Minority in Parliament has accused President John Mahama’s administration of mismanaging public funds, questioning how the government is utilising significant revenue left behind by the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration and generated in recent months.

Stephen Amoah, the Minority’s spokesperson, raised concerns over what he described as an “unprecedented sweeping of the accounts of public agencies,” including Senior High Schools, which has crippled operations across several institutions.

“The country is in comatose, and nothing is happening in these agencies since the NPP handed over the Government to the NDC,” Amoah said. “This is the first time we have heard Heads of Senior High Schools complaining about their accounts being swept by the Government through the Controller and Accountant General Department.”

According to the Minority, the previous NPP government left GHS3 billion in T-Main 2 Accounts for the incoming administration at the end of 2024. In addition, January’s Domestic Tax Revenue amounted to GHS8.7 billion due to late tax payments from the previous year. The government also borrowed GHS38 billion through Treasury Bills in January 2025 alone.

“We are at pains to ask the government why this state of affairs persists in spite of the significant levels of revenues generated,” Amoah said. “What has the Government been doing with all this money?”

The Minority also questioned the government’s claims that fulfilling domestic bondholders' obligations had drained public funds, arguing that the recent coupon payments required no more than GHS6 billion in cash payments.

“The previous NPP Government honoured three previous payments to bondholders between August 2023 and December 2024, totalling GHS17.25 billion in Payment-In-Cash (PIC) and GHS9.77 billion in Payment-In-Kind (PIK),” Amoah stated.

He warned that investor confidence could be undermined if the government continued to politicise matters relating to bondholders. “Such interference in the legitimate work of the professional staff of the Ministry [of Finance] does not engender confidence and transparency in the public sector,” he added.

Amoah also called on the government to explain why contractors had not been paid since assuming office despite the substantial revenues available.

The Minority vowed to hold the Mahama administration accountable, promising to ensure that investor confidence is sustained and that public resources are used transparently.

Source: Classfmonline.com/Cecil Mensah