General News of Sunday, 31 December 2017
Source: classfmonline.com
2017-12-31
Former Vice-President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur
Former Vice-President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has said he does not believe there was any mistake in the controversial GHS1billion budget of the Ministry of Special Development Initiatives, as explained by sector minister Mavis Hawa Koomson.
In the ministry’s budget, which was approved by parliament, 275 ambulances will be procured at a unit cost of GHS354,750 totaling GHS97,556,250.
Fifty warehouses would be constructed at a unit cost of GHS1,652,469 totaling GHS82,623,480.
Also, 1000 solar-powered mechanical boreholes would be constructed at a unit cost of GHS132,000 totaling GHS132,000,000.
Additionally, 1000 “water closet institutional toilets with mechanised boreholes and solar panels” would be constructed at a unit cost of GHS187,000 totaling GHS187,000,000.
Fifty micro-enterprises would also be constructed at a unit cost of GHS550,000 totaling GHS 27,500,000.
Below are the rest of the items in the budget approved for the ministry led by Mavis Hawa Koomson:
275 projects at a unit cost of GHS1,100,000 totaling GHS302,500,000
Construction of 100 markets at a unit cost of GHS1,100,000 totaling GHS110,000,000
Internal Management or Organisations totaling GHS8,600,000
Hiring of office accommodation for Middle Belt and Coastal Belt Development Authority and Regional Offices totaling GHS15,000,000
Legal and Administrative Framework Review – GHS1000,000
Maintenance, Rehabilitation and Refurbishment – GHS3000,000
Procurement of Office Furniture and Fixtures – GHS6,500,000
Local and International Affiliation – GHS2,500,000
Procurement of Office Supplies and Consumables – GHS3,000,000
Tendering Activities – GHS759,970
Treasury and Accounting Activities – GHS500,000
Procurement of Computers and Accessories – GHS1,500,000
Manpower Skill Development – GHS3,500,000
Foreign Training – GHS2,000,000
Planning and Policy Formulation – GHS3,500,000
Policies and Programme Review Activities – GHS1,500,000
Publication and Decimination of Policies and Programmes – GHS500,000
Development and Management of Database – GHS400,000
Research and Development – GHS1,000,000
Development of Website – GHS800,000
Budget Preparation – GHS2,000,000
Budget Performance Reporting – GHS500,000
Management and Monitoring of Policies and Projects – GHS3,000,000
Ms Koomson has explained that the GHS800,000 allocation for the website was a mistake. It was rather GHS80,000, she explained.
However, Mr Amissah-Arthur told Accra-based Joy News’ Central Regional Correspondent, Richard Kwadwo Nyarko on Saturday that: “The explanations I am getting, I don’t accept them because even if it was a mistake, the total should have reflected that but that is not the case.”
To him, technocrats at the Ministry of Finance should be blamed for the bloat.
“If they did not do their work well, I will not excuse them.”