Foodstuff price debate continues in Parliament
Kwamena's inexhaustible store of vocabulary
Accra (Greater Accra) 22 June 201
Debate on prices of foodstuff continued in Parliament on Thursday with the usual zeal, insinuations, accusations and counter accusations.
Mr George Isaac Amo, NPP-Ayawaso West Wuogon, said the hike in prices of foodstuff was a reflection of the poor policies implemented by the former government over the years.
"Ghana is reaping what the NDC has sown. All the silos built long ago to store excess food are empty. Their policies were not good enough to make the agriculture sector capable of securing all year around availability of food for the country."
He said that the former government through its mal-administration collapsed the Ghana Food Distribution Corporation (GFDC) the most effective mechanism for food availability and equity in the country.
"The NPP took office just five months ago, if the average cassava or cocoyam takes six months to mature, farmers who planted their crops on the eve of the government's inauguration are yet to harvest."
Mr Johnson Aseidu Nketsia, NDC-Wenchi West, said members of Parliament owe Ghanaians loyalty and sincerity in pointing out to the executive the reality of high prices of foodstuff.
"This motion is merely asking the house to recognise the fact that food prices are escalating. Food has no political colour."
He said the present increase in the price of tractor and other farming implements has put an additional burden on the farmer.
Mr Aseidu Nketsia said: "If the regime of new prices is the government's interpretation of subsidies, then I am afraid we are not marching towards the achievement of food security."
The member said: "What are you afraid of? Why do we sit here and hide our heads in the sand like ostriches? Let the people know that we recognise the problem."
He blamed the hikes on, "the bad timing of the lowering of VAT threshold, increase in utility tariffs and bad management of food information.
"Workers need to be given salary and wage increment to reflect the rising cost of living. Workers are genuinely suffering."
He said the hike in prices has nothing to do with shortages in production and urged the government to salvage the situation.
Mr Siedu Amadu, NDC-Yapei-Kusogwu, said farmers need to be protected from middlemen and women who exploit them unduly.
He said if the country is to experience food price stability farmers should be assured of a guaranteed farm-gate price.
Mr Kwamena Bartels, Minister of Works and Housing, said the government would return all subsidies on agriculture inputs and revamp the Ghana Food Distribution Corporation to ensure food security.
He said no member of the NDC should ever accuse the present government of insensitivity because they were to blame for whatever suffering Ghanaians are going through.
GRi…/
Send your comments to news@ghanareview.com
Accra (Greater Accra) 22 June 2001
Heckling and objections could not deplete a minister's store of vocabulary as he tried to link the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) to the National Democratic Congress during a debate.
Mr Kwamena Bartels, Minister of Works and Housing, on Thursday first went about his idea by saying, "for the first time in our history, one government has ruled the country for twenty years and messed up"
Mr Bartels was challenged on technical grounds that the PNDC was different from the NDC.
He came again saying, "the same set of people who have ruled for 20 years have messed up Ghana".
Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, Speaker, asked the Minister to withdraw the statement because it was not factual.
Mr Bartels, still determined not to give up said, "I am talking about the two governments, which had one common denominator and one leader in the person of ex-President Rawlings that have messed up Ghana".
This time, the Speaker, smiling in admiration for the Minister's perseverance, overruled an intervention from the Minority, saying, "this time you (Minority) could not succeed in stopping him. What he said is a matter of fact and record.
GRi…/
Send your comments to news@ghanareview.com
Accra (Greater Accra) 22 June 2001
The United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) on Thursday urged African parliamentarians to play a key role in the fight against HIV/AIDS and promote gender equity and human rights.
It said the AIDS pandemic bears ugly marks of the highly visible damage on all aspect of life including food production, extinction of populations and social danger of the risk of stunting malnutrition of orphans.
Mr Moses Mukasa, UNFPA Representative on HIV/AIDS painting a gloomy picture on the toll the AIDS is taking on Africa said "effective leadership and social mobilisation may present us with the greatest weapon yet against the disease".
Mr Mukasa was delivering an address at the second biennial conference of the Ghanaian Parliamentary Caucus on Population and Development (GPCPD).
He said, "it is crucial, therefore, that we develop and strengthen partnership at various levels of the society to share and improve the strategies and actions we take to effectively deal with the HIV/AIDS pandemic".
He said because of the disease sugar estates in Kenya has collapsed and direct health expenditure increased tenfold while in Botswana about 30 per cent of the population were infected with the virus resulting in a slashing of life expectancy from about 70 years to just about 40.
"Let us not forget that over 50 per cent of new infections occur in people aged less than 25 years and that in Tanzania AIDS will kill an estimated 27,000 teachers by the year 2020".
Mr Mukasa urged Parliament to enact laws that would enable government to formulate and implement policies and programmes that could improve the lives of millions and to protect millions, who were not yet infected by the HIV virus.
"Parliamentarians can help to increase budgetary allocations for HIV programmes and activities," he said.
He said they could also work with civil society groups to raise public awareness about the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the support required to combat it.
Mr Mukasa advised Ghanaians not to be complacent about the 4.6 infection rate of the disease as against 11 per cent each in Cote d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Togo.
Dr Richard B. Turkson, Executive Director of National Population Council (NPC) commended the Ghanaian Parliamentary Caucus for working hard with NPC to pass the Children's Bill.
He said the Caucus identified areas of law and policy, which was consistent with the principle, tenets and objectives of the revised national population policy on adolescent reproductive health and HIV/AIDS.
Professor Fred D. Osai, UN Population Consultant, said it would be necessary for the Caucus to adopt a new five-year plan of action sponsored by UNFPA.
The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey said the AIDS pandemic was a threat to the sustenance of economic activities since the youth, who were to be the future leaders were the most vulnerable to the disease.
Professor George Benneh, former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Legon, who chaired the function, urged the Caucus, UNFPA and NPC to continue to work as a team in the fight against the disease.
GRi./
Send your comments to news@ghanareview.com