Government is broke, where is Bawumia’s magic wand? Asks Bolga MP

The Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga Central, Isaac Adongo says the government has gone broke and had to borrow to pay September salaries of public sector workers.

The situation, he claims, is the result of the government’s incompetent fiscal management, a situation he says shows up daily.

A press statement he issued Monday said “The poor revenue performance reflects the lack of innovation in raising revenues. We still recall like yesterday, Dr Bawumia saying "the money is here. We know how to find it." Where is that magic wand, Dr Bawumia?”

The MP said it is “rather both very shameful, depressing and heavily embarrassing for a Government to borrow not for infrastructural development but to pay salaries. Borrowing for recurrent expenditure is the most unacceptable thing that we should allow a government to do. Ghana is retrogressing with speed.”

He concluded that “Economic Management is not ‘mouth mouth’” and that the reality is even yet to dawn.

Below is the full statement

For immediate release.

STATEMENT FROM THE OFFICE OF THE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR BOLGATANGA CENTRAL CONSTITUENCY

The incompetence in the fiscal management of the Akufo Addo/Bawumia led Government keeps showing up on a daily basis.

The poor revenue performance reflects the lack of innovation in raising revenues. We still recall like yesterday, Dr Bawumia saying "the money is here. We know how to find it." Where is that magic wand, Dr Bawumia?

On the other hand is a ballooning public expenditure in obligatory payments such as compensation payments and debt payments and debt service obligations.

This has resulted in a situation of acute cash crisis compelling government to resort to measures that have grave unbearable impact on citizens.

Government is essentially broke and is gasping for liquidity breath. After releasing a paltry GHC200m for Free SHS which essentially went in to settle 2 terms of arrears of SHS's being some unpaid bills, Government had to now engage in aggressive borrowing last week in order to pay September salaries.

The Minister of finance desperately stopped the Controller and Accountant General from processing September salaries for workers in the Public Sector under the guise of "additional validation measures and inputs for financial clearance" long after the closure of IPPD for September salaries.

The current phenomenon is that, workers are getting paid much later than they should, because government has to borrow to process the salaries.

The case of September only highlights the effect of government incompetence and insensitivity to the plight of workers.

It must be underscored that, some public sector workers got their salaries sometime last week. But this is because, some of the Banks (State owned Banks), GCB, NIB and ADB were willing to immediately advance an interest-free payment by crediting the accounts of their clients on public sector vouchers on behalf of government.
This is another matter for discussion later because of the risk to banking operations.

Public sector workers receiving their salaries through the purely private banks had to endure with very late payments for September.

September is normally a very difficult month for the average worker because it coincides with schools reopening. This is when parents are struggling to pay the fees of their wards. Late payments of salaries may have compelled parents to go in for loans at huge cost. Their salaries are effectively eroded. Managing an economy shouldn't just depend on the theory and book knowledge alone. We're managing human beings and their plight must at all times reflect the policies we implement.

It is rather both very shameful, depressing and heavily embarrassing for a Government to borrow not for infrastructural development but to pay salaries. Borrowing for recurrent expenditure is the most unacceptable thing that we should allow a government to do. Ghana is retrogressing with speed.

Economic Management is not "mouth mouth". The reality is even yet to come. What we are seeing is just the tip of the iceberg.

Signed:

Hon Isaac Adongo (Member of Parliament, Bolgatanga Central)