Petroleum subsidy claim is fraud

Read Article

Comments (16)

This article is closed for comments.

Read Comments Comments (16)

Kofi Asaase Asa--- Mantukwa 12 years ago

What I do not understand is this question:

why is it that, in 'Less Developed' or 'developing countries' like ours, Ghana, any increment in prices starts from percentages not less than 20?

Whilst I do have any problem w ...
read full comment

What I do not understand is this question:

why is it that, in 'Less Developed' or 'developing countries' like ours, Ghana, any increment in prices starts from percentages not less than 20?

Whilst I do have any problem with price increases,I have very huge problems with 'Fuel Price Increases', and at times, I think it is either the government is overbold or the economic advisers are so inept and cheap that they do not apply their 'basic or elementary' knowledge of Economics, Demand and Supply, in their economic decisions .

Some time ago, in one of my comments on an article on this forum on the 'Three Wisemen', appointed by President Mahamah, I used these two words: 'Effectiveness and Efficiency'.
I went further to apply the techinque of cost/benefit analysis.

Why should the government increase the price of fuel by 20%?

Did the government take into consideration,the perfectly in-elastic demand elasticity for this product and its ripple effect on the economy when its price is increased or decreased?

Why did the government not increase the price of this produce gradually or incrementally over a given period of time? For example, 5% over a period of every six months, at least.

What the government should know is that, fuel is a resource, and rent is a price, the price of land.

Why should the government hike up the rent allowances of parliamentarians and pass over the cost to ordinary man in the street in the form of increase in fuel prices?

Really my conclusions are that,

Either this government is over-bold and ignorant or is made up of cheap, inept and in-experienced economic advisers, whose main goal is 'window dressing' or stealing from 'Peter to pay Paul'.

Ghana is in a big mess. Ghana is in crisis!
Kofi Asaase Asa--- Mantukwa 12 years ago

Lets I forget, and this is precisely what I wanted to suggest or add to my comment on this exorbitantly lump sum 20% increase in fuel prices.

For example, the minimum wage in United States of America is currently $7.25 pe ...
read full comment

Lets I forget, and this is precisely what I wanted to suggest or add to my comment on this exorbitantly lump sum 20% increase in fuel prices.

For example, the minimum wage in United States of America is currently $7.25 per hour. The Obama government ackowleging that this price for labor is unreasonably low, and in its attempt to raise the price to $9.00 per hour, did not, out of the blue, announce this $9.00 increase to take effect immediately, but instead suggested this increase to be spread over a period of about three or four years. That is sound economic policy. a wise policy, because it took into consideration the effect of this price for labor on businesses and employers.

The question is:

Why did these economic advisers in Ghana,not emulate such policies, instead of boldly and insensitively, jumping the increase to 20%, with immediate effect.

The government should have thought and considered the welfare of the people, and spread this 20% increase over a reasonable period of time , for example, 5% increase in every six months, over a period of four years?

Please lets have a sound economic policy!
OBIBA-JUDAS 12 years ago

THE Problem is.The Competent people to Handling Ghana Affairs are NPP.But Look.The Foolish People in Ghana are always Voting for NDC.So Stop crying.Ghanaians.

THE Problem is.The Competent people to Handling Ghana Affairs are NPP.But Look.The Foolish People in Ghana are always Voting for NDC.So Stop crying.Ghanaians.
kubgah 12 years ago

Mr. wright after paying the world price for the crude oil or the finish
products as indicated, do we still have to pay for transporting it to Ghana or is free I believe there are other cost involved which will shoot up the ...
read full comment

Mr. wright after paying the world price for the crude oil or the finish
products as indicated, do we still have to pay for transporting it to Ghana or is free I believe there are other cost involved which will shoot up the cost.So please lets do our home work well before we start the blame game,ask your self how much thus it cost for a Fuel Tank to carry fuel from Tema to Wa, and still all pay the same pump price at the stations how about cost of reffining the crude oil.
Kofi Asaase Asa--- Mantukwa 12 years ago

What about this question.

At the time that Ghana was not a producer of oil, Governments were able to absorb this subsidy. Why is that at this time that Ghana is producing oil we are now reducing the subsidy?

Is the sub ...
read full comment

What about this question.

At the time that Ghana was not a producer of oil, Governments were able to absorb this subsidy. Why is that at this time that Ghana is producing oil we are now reducing the subsidy?

Is the subsidy being reduced because Ghana has reached a level that supply is exceeding demand or cost of production as at its lowest levels?

These are questions that need to be answered and not any transportation costs, because these costs are fixed in terms of prices of fuel in Ghana.

Do you know something?

The issue with Ghana is an issue of the 'Scale of preference'. Putting our priorities right!

Why should the government cheaply sucuumb to hiikng tne rent allowances of parliamentarians, for example, and not seeing the wisdom of at least, spreading the increase in the price of fuel over a reasonable period of time?

The issue is that if you get the government at 'one touch', you take economic decisions at 'one touch' because as the saying goes:

'Necessity is the Mother of invention.'

If things are given to you on a 'silver platter' you spend it on a 'silver platter'.
mensah abrampa 12 years ago

Question for you. Why do we prefer importing the finished product to the crude oil which would be cheaper and would also give us added benefits from the refining process as enumerated by the writer? We are just not being smar ...
read full comment

Question for you. Why do we prefer importing the finished product to the crude oil which would be cheaper and would also give us added benefits from the refining process as enumerated by the writer? We are just not being smart with our fiscal policies and the reason is that we sidestep competent people for political reasons and allow mediocrities to ruin our government.
Kofi Ata, Cambridge, UK 12 years ago

Akwasi, hope you are fine. Whilst the subsidy claim government does not seem to hold water, you also forget to indicate if the crude oil prices are COD (cost on delivery). If not, then it is important to take into considerati ...
read full comment

Akwasi, hope you are fine. Whilst the subsidy claim government does not seem to hold water, you also forget to indicate if the crude oil prices are COD (cost on delivery). If not, then it is important to take into consideration the transportation cost of the crude to Ghana as well as refinery and distribution costs in Ghana.

It's heart breaking to hear that Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) has been left to rot whilst Ghana imports finished petroleum products. Where are the nation's priorities? What happened to radical Pinto and others? I guess they have retired so there are no militants to fight against the importation of finished product instead of crude oil for TOR to refine.

It's even disturbing to hear that at a time Ghana is an oil producer, officials are running down TOR to justify its privatisation on the cheap. They will then turn round and buy it with their foreign collaborators to make millions of profit within a very short time. I am not against privatisation but TOR is a national asset of great importance and also has national security implications that must be protected.
NANA AMMAH C.COAST 12 years ago

SEKOU NKRUMAH HAD SAID IT>NDC CANT GOVERN THIS COUNTRY>SO LET US SACK THEM.

SEKOU NKRUMAH HAD SAID IT>NDC CANT GOVERN THIS COUNTRY>SO LET US SACK THEM.
Amega 12 years ago

Fantastic article - brilliant expose, showing good understanding of the issues. Congratulations!!

Fantastic article - brilliant expose, showing good understanding of the issues. Congratulations!!
Sani 12 years ago

... but I am not very sure of your argument about the price that we are told. A certain price of oil is always quoted in such transactions and govt announcements without stating that the price being quoted is Brent or WTI or ...
read full comment

... but I am not very sure of your argument about the price that we are told. A certain price of oil is always quoted in such transactions and govt announcements without stating that the price being quoted is Brent or WTI or whatever. Is there not an internationally agreed quotation without reference to a particular type of oil?

You said people carry tons of dollars out of the country. Is there a law against that? If so, then I agree with you that we have problems with enforcement of our laws. The value of the cedi reflects the performance of the economy. The cedi is going down because the economy is not doing well, not because people are carrying suitcases of dollars out of the country. That itself is the result of the economy not doing well. The solution is not to stop people from carrying dollars out but to improve economic performance.

But your point about government not explaining everything to us is very true. They keep us in darkness because they believe we cannot understand anything and they can get away with whatever.

And your call for the monitoring of government officials riding around in their big cars ostensibly doing government business is a call well made. If the people should suffer from oil price increases, then govt officials too should suffer the same, whether they are on govt business or not.

ghanaba 12 years ago

GOD bless you amen

GOD bless you amen
nana 12 years ago

well done bro

well done bro
mensah abrampa 12 years ago

Thanks Kwasi for the free enlightenment. It's true that they are perpetrating a fraud on the blind side of the people.For God's sake they'll have to answer the many questions you have raised.They have grossly mismanaged the r ...
read full comment

Thanks Kwasi for the free enlightenment. It's true that they are perpetrating a fraud on the blind side of the people.For God's sake they'll have to answer the many questions you have raised.They have grossly mismanaged the resources we entrusted into their care.
First of all we have refused to make adequate to maximum use of the Tema Oil Refinery, left it to rot and only waiting to announce its obituary. What a waste ! Nkrumah built silos for storage purposes but the politicians who were opposed to him allowed them to rot in Tema. What another waste ! We keep shooting ourselves in the foot and turn round still clutching the smoking gun in our hands only to blame an innocent passerby. When are we going to learn to put our fiscal house in order?
When the fat cats in Accra were arbitrarily increasing their salaries and jaw dropping benefits they did not think about us, we the people. It was just for them but not for us. Now that it's time for sacrifice in the national interest they are calling on us, the poor and needy living several miles below the poverty line and making less than $75 to maximum $500 a month to sacrifice. They won't share the mouth watering juices with us but neither will they share the sacrifice with us too. They give us the sacrifice and they take the better part. It has always been them and us. We demand a shared sacrifice during this difficult time. Does anybody think we are making an unfair demand? I don't think so.
There are a few solutions .1. Take away the subsidy and pay us a living wage and salary that can support our nuclear families.We cannot lose the safety net and chop stone. Man must eat. 2. Beginning from the President they must slash considerably their fat salaries and benefits and if there is any more need for sacrifice then we the people will help.They must also take immediate steps to reduce the huge waste in the system. There are far too many people doing too little to nothing who take big paychecks end of every month. What about the unbelievably large number of ghost names on the government's payroll which need to be expunged? If we manage our resources wisely there will be enough for everybody and for the first time we'll begin to see economic growth year after year.
The subsidy really was a wrong economic path to follow after independence. Subsidies become necessary because the meagre salaries and wages paid cannot support one person let alone his nuclear family. Salaries and wages have stagnated over the years and the gap between the haves and have nots has widened and deepened into a gulf. Any new economic policy must take cognizance of the needs of the teeming masses not the rich who became rich at our expense and have since developed an unsatiable appetite for wealth acquisition.
Asempaneye 12 years ago

Do the laws of Ghana allow individual citizens to sue for causing financial loss to the state?

Do the laws of Ghana allow individual citizens to sue for causing financial loss to the state?
JH-New York City 12 years ago

Good article! The difference in Tico and Royce prices is what goes into their pockets.

Good article! The difference in Tico and Royce prices is what goes into their pockets.
JH-New York City 12 years ago

Rouge Leaders and Executives ! Shame unto you.

Rouge Leaders and Executives ! Shame unto you.

16 Comments

Welcome,

SIGN IN

Welcome,

RESET PASSWORD

Hello,

Terms and conditions

REGISTER

Petroleum subsidy claim is fraud

Read Comments .st0{display:none;fill:#14BDD3;} .st1{display:none;} .st2{display:inline;fill:#FC0F0F;} .st3{display:inline;fill:#FFFFFF;} .st4{display:inline;fill:none;stroke:#000000;stroke-width:6;stroke-miterlimit:10;} Comments (16)

Read Comments Comments (16)