PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has outlined his vision to transform the country if elected as president to his ‘father’, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene.
Addressing a durbar of chiefs chaired by Otumfuo at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi on Wednesday, Dr. Bawumia said that creating an enabling environment and supporting the private sector to play important roles in the economy is his top priority.
“The private sector will be given the needed support to flourish under my administration,” he announced, “The private sector will be given incentives to lead government expenditure, leading to wealth creation and prosperity.”
According to him, the country’s developmental agenda would be expedited if the private sector was encouraged and supported to play an active role in the country.
“The construction of projects like prisons and the purchasing of school buses should be given to the private sector. The famous digitalisation agenda was financed by private sector and it was successful,” he pointed out.
Solar Power Generation
Dr. Bawumia also noted that his government would pay maximum attention to solar power generation, noting that the over-reliance on crude oil and gas for power generation was deeply draining national coffers, which is not the best.
“I want us to depend on solar power. We have constant sun so we can harvest it to provide power. I’m targeting 2000 megawatts of solar power to support our power generation and improve businesses,” he outlined.
Tax System
He said the country’s tax system is complicated and it creates confusion between business owners and officials of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) “so I will introduce the flat tax system policy to bring sanity into the system.”
According to him, he and his team travelled to Estonia, which has the best tax system in the world to study and learn from, announcing that there would be a tax amnesty for businesses before the flat tax system is introduced in 2025.
Chieftaincy Act Review
Dr. Bawumia also said the Chieftaincy Act has restricted chiefs from playing key roles in the governance of the country so his administration would review the Act and allow chiefs to play active roles in the governance of the country.
He lamented that the restrictions on chiefs in the governance of the country has not helped, especially as indiscipline among the youth in the various communities keeps increasing.
Railway System
He said the railway sector would experience massive transformation under his leadership, indicating that countries that are doing well globally depend on railways for transportation, adding that the private sector would play roles in the railway sector.
Small Scale Mining
Dr. Bawumia also said he would involve chiefs in a new community mining scheme that his government would introduce, whereby the miners would be positioned in an area with strong supervision to protect the environment.
One Million Jobs
According to him, his government would also help train one million youth in digital skills for them to become productive to the economy, saying that he is the right leader to lead the country’s digitalisation agenda.
He concluded by saying that he wants to be a President who would lead the country into growth and prosperity for all and sundry, stating emphatically that, “I want to be a president for growth and development of the country.”
He, therefore, appealed passionately to the Asantehene, who he considers as his father, to support him with prayers, wise counsel and direction so he would realise his ambition of becoming the next president of Ghana.
FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi