The Minority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, has rebuked the Minister for Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, accusing him of failing to deposit any money into the Sinking Fund despite earlier commitments.
He made the remarks on the floor of Parliament during the presentation of the Business Statement for the ensuing week.
Mr Annoh-Dompreh recalled that during his vetting, Dr Ato Forson had indicated that one of the policies of the new administration would be to prioritise payments into the Sinking Fund as part of efforts to strengthen debt management.
According to the Minority Chief Whip, the Minister had criticised the previous government’s handling of the Fund and pledged to do more if approved.
“During his vetting he courageously said that one of the government’s policies would be to help put funds into the Sinking Fund. You had said that the previous government that put GH¢138 million into the Fund didn’t do anything and you were going to do more,” he stated.
However, Mr Annoh-Dompreh expressed concern that the pledge has not been fulfilled.
“But Mr Speaker, as we speak, not even a cedi has been put into the Sinking Fund. Nothing,” he stressed, drawing the attention of the House to what he described as a worrying development.
He therefore called on the Finance Minister to return to Parliament to address the issue.
“The Minister must come back to the House and address the matters of the Sinking Fund and speak to the concerns raised,” he added, urging greater transparency and accountability in the management of the country’s debt obligations.
