The plan by the Akufo-Addo-led government to use the Heritage Fund to finance the Free Senior High School programme is “shocking” and “untenable”, Fifi Kwetey, a former Minister of Transport, has said.
According to him, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), when it was in opposition, made it known that it would fiercely resist any attempt by the then government to use the Heritage Fund for whatever purpose since the fund was for the unborn generation and, thus, should not be spent.
His comments come after Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Maafo stated at a forum in Accra on Tuesday February 14 that the Heritage Fund, into which nine per cent of the country’s annual petroleum revenue is paid, would be used to sustain the Free SHS programme.
He said: “We have to make an amendment to say that X per cent of the Heritage Fund, or the Petroleum Fund will be used to support second cycle education. If we think that industry requires a certain stimulus that will enable jobs to be created and you are creating a job to build Ghana, you can look at it and put in a certain amount. We are [also] looking at agriculture.”
But speaking in an interview with Class FM Wednesday February 15, Mr Kwetey said: “Clearly this position by our friends now in government is shocking and absolutely difficult to understand.
“First and foremost we need to understand that the reason behind the Petroleum Fund is to say Ghana has made a discovery of oil and this resource is finite resource. A time will come that there will be not one litre of oil and, therefore, it is important to make generations to come clearly know that Ghana at a stage had access to this particular resource.
“In setting out the law, we need to understand that there were three main aspects of that revenue that is coming from the Petroleum Account. The first one was going to support the budget – that is, the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA). There is an aspect which is going to be used for stabilisation because it was important to keep some Stabilisation Fund and the third aspect is a percentage will go into the Heritage.”
He added: “…We must appreciate that that is the reason why as a country the budget that is made available for education, out of the taxes we pay, every year some money is devoted to take care of education. And apart from that, in Ghana we have the GETFund, Ghana Education Trust Fund, so you don’t now come and take the money that we said it should be set aside for the sake of the children unborn.
“The people who are talking about this today fiercely resisted us that even if need be, they would resist this with everything they had to ensure the money meant for the children is not touched under any circumstances.
“So, this is a no, no; It is untenable.”
Source: classfmonline.com
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You this guy should go and take his medication as soon as possible. You think all Ghanaians think like this so call NDC people
This act of hypocrisy of the NPP is very unthinkable. So, something which is totally wrong according to theirlogic(NPP), is now right under them? In fact, I can't fathom the sense and the rationale behind this reckless and ***barred word*** idea. Ghanaians are watching with keen interest.
We need well educated people to build a nation,you can not use only money to build your country. you will need people with critical mind and those who can Analise issue properly, but it is only education that can produce these kind of people that this country will need.Its therefore means that we can use the money available now to educate our children to acquire very useful skills that will adequately proper them to be able to move this country to the level that we are all seeking to achieve.So i see nothing wrong if that fund is used to give free education to our future leaders.
This is double standard at the highest level. As for our NPP people "3tua NPP hua 3tua nipa hu but 3tua obi hua 3tua dua hu". Is this not the same Heritage fund they fiecely resist when NDC wanted to touch but today they see nothing wrong for them to use it to fund their campaign promise. l thought H.E NAADA had the magic wand to release money into every ghanaian pocket as soon as he was elected. l thought he had the keys to the locked jobs in ghana so ghanaians don't have work to do but as soon as he is elected as president he will unlock that jobs door and jobs will flow for every ghanaian even for the lazy ones to have jobs to do l thought he had king midas touch as soon as he gets power free education will cut across every SHS student and not for 2017/2018 students only, there is no fairness. what about those who voted for NPP bcos of their free education concept but their wards are in forms 2 and 3. the list goes on. we should do honest politics and not for the sake of wanting power promise things that we cannot do. The realities are now donning on them. Good luck to NPP.
Ha ha, this guy just woke up from the NDC defeat coma and does not know where he is. My fvriend, you are now in the regime of somebody who thinks about Ghanaians, NOT LIKE the CREATE LOOT AND SHARE of your former paymaster John Mahama.SHOCKING OR NOT, YOUR REGIME IS GONE FOR GOOD. NANA WILL USE THE HERITAGE FUND TO BENEFIT WE THE TAX PAYERS. YOU ***barred word*** SHOULD BE ME MUTE. BY THE WAY HOW MANY CARS WERE AUCTIONED TO YOU BY JOHN MAHAma. EVEN KOFI ADAMS WHO WAS NOT A MINISTER HAD 12. YOU WERE A MINISTER FOR 4 MINISTRIES IN THE 8 YEARS SO 4*12 = 48 CARS UG UG OH MY GOD! onaapo!
Detractor, Lair. What did you do when you were given 8years. Give us a break. Afiafito.