NPP Is Not Anti-Gov�t Or Anti-Progress - Minority Leader

The Minority Leader in Parliament, Hon. Osei Kyei-Mensah Bonsu, has sought to debunk the notion that the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) is anti-government or anti-progress, stressing that it is absurd to think that anybody who criticizes the government is unpatriotic. The NPP has not lost an opportunity to let the public know that the NDC is deceiving Ghanaians with regards to the much-talked about $3 billion Chinese loan for massive infrastructural development. The Mills� administration, the NPP insists, must let Ghanaians in on the truth that there is no way Ghana can source the Chinese loan since the International Monetary Fund (IMF) needs to give their blessing to it first. The Chairman of the Finance Committee in Parliament, Hon James Klutse Avedzi says by mid-December (14th), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) board will meet and to all intents and purposes, since the signs are favorable, the 3 billion loan facility will be approved under the review programme of the IMF, and �to the shame of their enemies�. But speaking in an interview with Shamima Muslim during City FM�s Eye Witness News, the Minority Leader stated emphatically that �nobody is praying that government fails as�this government has an attitude that if you criticize them, then you are unpatriotic and that�s the language that the Finance Committee Chairman speaks. His absurdity that anybody who critics government is unpatriotic is worrisome�nobody is saying that it should not come; we are only asking for the right procedure to be used�,� he said. According to him, prior to this arrangement, government crafted the Petroleum Revenue Act and said they (government) will not use revenue accrued from the sale of the country�s oil as a form of collateral, but sadly failed to abide by their own pledge. He added that the NPP then proposed that a measure of the country�s GDP be used to put a seal on how much revenue accrued from the sale of oil could be used as collateral by any government, pointing out that if this is not done, and care is not taken, �we could have an irresponsible government to misuse it." ��to the extent that you are using the oil money as collateral for 15 years is in obvious breech of the petroleum management act and government should take that on board�� he asserted.