Citizens’ Coalition Yowls Over Gov’t Approach In Handling Economic Crisis

Citizens’ Coalition, a pressure group made up of Civil Society Organisations(CSOs), has shown displeasure towards the manner in which the government is tackling the economic challenge in the country.

The Coalition, made up of other individuals that uphold democracy and accountability, has pointed out that the 2023 Budget is contrary to the expectations of Ghanaians.

In a press release dated December 8, 2022, the Coalition suggested that “all parliamentary sub-committees as a matter of urgency should engage in a national consensus among key stakeholders such as investors (business community), civil society organizations (CSOs), and the citizenry to help accelerate the country’s recovery efforts and avoid the mistakes of the past”.

Again, “Parliament should not allow the budget to pass without proper scrutiny. Technocrats must be invited to Committee meetings for presentations specific to the Appropriation Bill. And this must be done to the full glare of all Ghanaians”.

Moreover, the Coalition indicated that “Parliament should be resolute in their quest for a censure motion for the removal of the Finance Minister”.

As a democratic, fair and accountable group, the Coalition has therefore called on the government to “urgently cut more expenditures by reducing the total number of ministers and deputies to 60 and seriously tackle the gross inefficiencies in loss-making SOEs. The presidential staff strength must as well be reduced to 80%”.

Additionally, they want the government to “absorb and merge a number of secretariats set up to oversee flagship programs and let civil servants manage them in the relevant ministries”.

They also want the Akufo-Addo administration to “reshuffle the Ministerial Team, including relieving the Finance Minister of his duties in order to restore hope in Ghana’s financial market”.

“Plug in leakages in public expenditure and tackle corruption. The E-VAT Invoicing system to be introduced by Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is commended and must be guarded to monitor inaccuracies associated with the filing of VAT by companies in order to maximize revenue generation,” the statement added.

The Coalition further urged the government to listen to the call of Ghanaians on economic hardship and make some adjustments to prevent further deterioration of the economy.