The Minority in Parliament is accusing the Mahama administration of unlawfully starving key institutions of funds nearly six months into his presidency.
The caucus warns that the continued delay in releasing statutory allocations is crippling local governance and social services.
At a fiery press conference in Parliament, Minority Chief Whip and MP for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, blasted the government for what he described as a blatant disregard for the law.
“It is surprising that for almost six months, out of the allocation of GH¢7.7 billion, not even a penny has gone to the assemblies,” he said.
He cited Act 936 of the Local Governance Act and a court ruling mandating quarterly disbursements. “This is a breach of the law,” he declared.
According to him, over GH¢7.5 billion was allocated to the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) in the 2024 Budget, yet the Assemblies remain dry.
“The whole of this year, not even a penny has been paid,” he stressed. He claimed the newly appointed Common Fund Administrator is “sitting idle” and confirmed checks at the fund secretariat revealed no disbursements.
Annoh-Dompreh didn’t stop there. He said the National Health Insurance Fund, which was allocated GH¢9.92 billion, has also received nothing.
“My check tells me no amount has been paid,” he said. “Then there’s GETFund. A GH¢4.1 billion allocation was made. Again, nothing has been paid.”
Even Parliament, he revealed, had not received its own second-quarter releases. “Before we started this press conference, I checked the accounts. Nothing has been paid.”
He said these statutory funds are “the oxygen” of the Assemblies. “You cannot cite any reason as a defence. It’s mandatory. It’s backed by law.”
Frank Annoh-Dompreh took direct aim at Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.
“The framers of our laws, in their wisdom, tagged these payments as statutory because they relate to basic necessities of life—health, education, and local governance. And once they are statutory, they must be respected.”
He questioned the government’s logic in collecting new taxes while ignoring legally mandated disbursements.
“The Growth and Sustainability Levy was increased from 1% to 3%. VAT on non-life insurance has also been increased,” he said.
“You’ve introduced taxes, you’ve collected these taxes, and yet you are flouting the statutory payments the law mandates you to pay.”
Mr Annoh-Dompreh accused the government of deliberately holding back on expenditure to give the false impression of economic stability.
“Is it the case that we want the books to look good, the cedi to look strong, and therefore we won’t spend?” he asked. “We are sounding a note of caution.”
He warned that the impact on citizens is already severe.
“Persons with disabilities, poverty reduction, boreholes, support to farmers, needy but brilliant children—these are what the common fund supports. The effect is broad, far-reaching, and grinding.”
He also raised red flags over the non-payment of the Social Investment Fund.
“Not even a penny has been paid. And I challenge them. The provisions, the allocated funds, are all in the budget.”
Frank Annoh-Dompreh said the administration was abusing the goodwill of its first year.
“They do all the evil things in their first year while enjoying goodwill. But statutory payments cannot be categorised as one of your evil deeds.”
“This cannot be entertained,” he warned.
“We will continue to speak to the issues and raise the concerns. It’s about the welfare of our people. It’s about the breach of our laws. And it’s not for nothing that these laws were passed—they are passed to be respected.”
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