The Minority Leader in Parliament, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has raised questions about the budget allocated to the Office of the President.
His remarks follow Parliament’s approval of GH₵2 billion for that office in the 2024 budget.
According to Ato Forson, the capital expenditure alone at the Office of the President is GH₵67 million. He wondered what specific items or purposes the amount is allocated for.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, December 21, Dr. Forson stated, “How many cars are they buying to the extent that they have to budget 67 million Ghana cedis for capital expenditure?
“Mr. Speaker, largely, this amount is for the purchase of cars. My concern is, is it because the election is approaching, and that is why the budget for the office of government machinery has increased from 1.4 billion to 2 billion,” he queried.
The Minority Leader further questioned why the budget for the Office of the President, in particular, has been increased from about GH₵400 million to GH₵2 billion, with goods and services alone amounting to GH₵450.6 million.
“What are they using this money for? Mr. Speaker, this is according to the budget statement before us. These are things that I believe this House must demand answers from the Office of the President.
“Mr. Speaker, most of this expenditure is concentrated in the Chief of Staff’s office, particularly the Special Operations account. The details, as presented by the Office of the President in the document submitted to the Finance Committee, are something that should concern all of us,” Dr. Forson said.
Also read: Office of the President engaged in reckless and irresponsible expenditure – Adongo
Meanwhile, the Ranking Member on the Finance Committee in Parliament, Isaac Adongo has accused the Office of the President of engaging in reckless and irresponsible expenditure after Parliament approved GH₵2 billion for the office in the 2024 budget.
According to him, the Chief of Staff’s office, the Press Office and the Cabinet Secretariat under the Office of the President were cited by the Finance Committee to have overspent their budget.
Mr Adongo questioned where the Office found the extra money to spend and urged them to show leadership by avoiding overspending.
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