The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, is expected to present the government’s 2024 Annual Budget Statement and Economic Policy to Parliament today, Wednesday, November 15, 2023.
The Member of Parliament for Yapei-Kusawgu, John Jinapor, on Tuesday, November 14 2023, said the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, want to allegedly raise an additional GH₵11 billion through the imposition of new taxes in the 2024 Budget.
According to the MP, during a meeting with the finance minister and his committee, he urged them to avoid taxing the citizens, rather the government should find ways of cutting down costs.
“We just met the Minister of Finance at the Finance Committee and the minister indicated that he intends to raise an additional GH₵11 billion which is about 1 percent of GDP but we have told him that we think that the people have been taxed so much so it will be inappropriate to come with new taxes rather the minister should look at cost cutting,” Jinapor said.
Stakeholders and parliament have called on the government on several occasions to reduce its expenditures to help revive the ailing economy.
According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dalex Finance and Leasing Company Limited, Kenneth Thompson, if the government carries out most of his projects that require a lot of expenses, there will be a looming economic downturn in 2024.
In an interview with Umaru Sanda Amadu on Face to Face on Citi TV, Mr. Thompson said: “As a country, what we must focus on now is how to protect the poor. If you talk about cutting expenditures, there’s a long list of things we can cut, but we need to protect the poor, and we need to focus on health, education, infrastructure, food, and everything else because we are in a very bad place.”
Meanwhile, the Finance Minister has indicated that long-term relief measures for the victims of the Akosombo Dam spillage will be taken into consideration during the formulation of the 2024 budget.
However, the minority in parliament is also expecting the government to consider a budget for the construction of the La General Hospital in 2024.