The minority in Parliament has rejected the government’s plans to increase government machinery personnel by 1,570 people.
According to the group, this figure is included in the fiscal year 2023 budget statement.
The Minority said it is unacceptable to increase government machinery staff to 3,681 at a time when there is an announced freeze on public sector employment.
The budget’s passage remains critical to the government’s chances of obtaining an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
At a press conference in Parliament, the Minority, led by Haruna Iddrisu, threatened to withdraw from the budget process if the Majority did not show commitment to the budget.
“We also strongly denounce plans to increase the staff strength of personnel at the office of the Government machinery by 1,570, on page 230 of the 2023 budget. If you are reducing the size of government, I’m not narrowing it to elephant size of the government of ministers, but even at the level of administrative and supporting staff at the presidency, which is captured under the budget of the office of the government machinery, which they are proposing to increase to 3,681, there can be no justification for this, and we will not accept this,” the Minority Leader said.
Again, the Minority group wants the government to abandon plans to build the National Cathedral, which has received an 80-million-cedi budgetary allocation.
