Tell us how $10 billion Big Push promise will be funded - IMANI to NDC

Policy Think Tank, IMANI Africa has asked the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to disclose their funding plan for some promises made in their manifesto.

The NDC flagbearer, John Mahama, has communicated his intention to create a $10 billion accelerated infrastructural plan, dubbed the Big Push, to provide jobs and execute an industrialisation plan when elected in December 2020.

He has also promised that Assembly Members will receive salaries from the government if the NDC returns to power.

Reacting to these pledges from John Mahama, the President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, urged the NDC to disclose the source of funding for such policies.

“If I listen to the tenor of their argument, they haven’t mentioned how they are going to do that – which is a minus. But there is a clear intent that they may raise money from private sources as well. And I think by doing so, they may have to ensure that the management of this asset is in tandem with the private sector because you can’t allow this perpetual abandonment of projects to go on forever. I think they may have to tell us exactly how they may raise the capital,”he spoke to Citi News.

He further stated that the promise to pay Assembly Members can be counterproductive due to lack of checks and balances on the productivity of such local representatives.

“They need to explain that to us because if the idea is to pay Assembly Members, it must be generated by the local assembly and I think that is what should be done. You can’t just be dishing out money from the centre to anybody who may or may not need it. If it is generated internally then they may be able to apportion a bit to these people. They must show they are working anyway. If they are working then automatically you generate revenue. You can’t be distributing salaries for no proper work done.” he said.