Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu
Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has said the government will take actions that enable economic recovery, including the passage of the Electronic Transfer Bill to generate the needed revenue for revitalisation of the economy.
According to him, economic recovery was central to the forward-looking agenda of the government and therefore, the Majority side will stand with the country to support the government’s decision. He said this was best aligned with the needs of the citizens, to pass the electronic transaction tax legislation to domestically raise revenue.
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu was responding to assertions by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, that the NDC MPs remained unshaken on their decision to reject the E-Levy when it was brought for consideration by the House.
“Mr. Speaker, the Minority Leader is adding that they have taken a position, and that they want to stand with the public to reject the E-Levy, and he said that with all emphasis.
“Mr. Speaker, we on this side (Majority), want to stand with the Republic to ensure the revitalisation of the economy,” he re-echoed, and added, “If people want to see the collapse of the economy, so be it for them. We will want to stand with the Republic.”
Minority Leader
Mr. Iddrisu had suggested on the floor of Parliament yesterday that the Majority Caucus wanted to “spring surprise” on his side on the issue relating to the E-Levy Bill by keeping NDC MPs in the dark on when it would be brought for consideration.
“An important matter of public interest and for purposes of the Ghanaian economy and fiscal consolidation, Order 160, provides that “it shall be the function of the Committee subject Order 53 order of business to determine the order of each sitting and the order which shall be taken.”
“Last Friday, there was an effort to introduce the E-Levy and for the second reading of the E-Levy to debate the principles [of the bill]. Mr. Speaker, we need to know. Earlier on when we adopted the business statement for the previous week, the E-Levy, we were told, would have been introduced tomorrow,” he said.
The Tamale South NDC MP indicated further that “Now, we got it introduced on Friday and then today as I watch the Order of the Business pursuant to Standing Order 53, I do not see anything relating to the E-Levy.”
“On this important matter, there can be no surprises. We want the Leader of Government Business to lead us through when it will be, if it is to be re-introduced as a new bill or Article 106 – thus the bill is gazetted for us to know or we are continuing Article 106 to suspend our Standing Orders to take it as a matter of urgency,” he quizzed.
Response
The Majority Leader, while responding, said “When I came to present the Business Statement for this week, indeed for last week, there was no indication that the E-Levy Bill was going to be taken; that is true.”
“But Mr. Speaker, subsequent to that there was some engagement between the two leaderships of the caucuses and it was determined that the E-Levy Bill would be introduced in the House last week Friday.”
“At the Speaker’s conclave, we further had this discussion. So it is not a matter of surprise. When I came to presenting the Business Statement for this week, I said if we were able to conclude discussions on the ways forward for the E-Levy it would be introduced in the House on Friday,” Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu explained.
He continued, “If we couldn’t finish, then it would come this week. The cause of the discussion facilitated the introduction in the House on Friday. Mr. Speaker, as well witnessed, we couldn’t make much progress which is why I said to us that if we couldn’t then it would come this week.”
“Before we even came in here (Chamber), the Minority Leader who is the Ranking Member of the Business Committee asked about the status and I told him that we would come to some determination, even though it has been advertised for tomorrow (Wednesday).”
“If you look at the supplementary Order Paper today, Mr. Speaker, you will see the provisional order paper will be advertised tomorrow,” he underscored.
He added, “Even that, I told you (Haruna) we need to confer on that because, to all intents and purposes, we would not be able to do it tomorrow. So he asked whether that was an assurance and I said to him that that is double assurance. Certainly, it will not come off tomorrow but we will determine together.”
“I have given that assurance and it is not as if anybody wants to spring any surprise. It has to be decided on and I will signal him and we agree on a common date,” he stated.
BY Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House