Akufo-Addo's six months budget for presidency exceeds Mahama's four years’ – NDC

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is alleging that budget allocated for the office of the President in the first six months of President Nana Akufo-Addo’s government is more than what former President Mahama’s office was assigned in its four-year term.

Addressing the press at the party’s headquarters on Thursday, Chairman of the party, Kofi Portuphy lambasted the president for spending lavishly on parties, gold ties and other material items since he assumed office.

The office of the president he said is getting an unprecedented amount of money to be spent in a frivolous manner.

The budget for the presidency he said exceeds major ministries and in their view, the president and his courtiers are dissipating the nation’s scarce resources without let not hindrance.

The NPP, he noted promises to protect the public purse however, President Akufo-Addo has done the opposite, by putting in place the most-heavy government ever in the history of the fourth republic.

‘’We are simply unable to reconcile the appointment of 110 ministers amidst the creation of useless and amorphous ministries. We [NDC] submit that the ministries for ; Public Procurement, Business Development, Regional Re-organization, Special Initiatives, Monitoring and Evaluation, Planning, Aviation, Harbours and Railways, amongst others, are all unnecessary and constitute a drain on the public purse. The functions of these redundant ministries can easily be performed by the existing ministries, departments and agencies,’’ he argued.

He said at the office of the president is receiving unprecedented amount of money to be spent frivolously, the universities, Ghana Health Service, Environmental Protection Agency, the National Blood Bank and other such agencies, have been order to surrender all Internally Generated Funds (IGFs), leaving such entities with nothing to operate with.

He also slammed the government for dismissing some nurses employed by the previous administration on the premise there is no money to pay salaries.

‘’Is not sheer callousness for the government to have money to be importing expensive dinner suits and bow-ties from the United Kingdom, Paris and Italy, and be spending lavishly on state banquets, while innocent people die in our hospitals because there are not enough nurses to give Medicare? …government is not a tea party. Governance is a serious business meant for serious people and the current President of Kwame’ Nkrumah’s Ghana has to get serious and govern in a more serious manner than he is doing, ’’ he fumed.