Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu is proposing the establishment of a committee of Parliament that would probe the impact of loan agreements by the government.
The Minister who doubles as the Majority Leader in Parliament says the functions of the Finance Committee of Parliament are limited and cannot assess the economic impact of loans on the country.
He made the call during an engagement with the core leadership and selected committees of Parliament.
“There should be a committee on the economy that will determine for Parliament, the impact of any loan that the nation will be taking. The Finance Committee has some functions like that, but they don’t make any referral of the impact of loans on the economy. They only talk about the terms and conditions. 10 or 15 years from now, we will wake up to the reality “, he said.
Parliament has been encouraged to do more in order to ensure value for money when signing international agreements, including loans.
It has become ostensible for Members of Parliament to become acquainted with the law and international best practices to ensure that the state benefits fully from all international agreements.
There have been instances where the state has been short-changed in some agreements brought before the House due to gaps in the conditions of some agreements, thereby affecting the economy.
It is for this reason, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu is pushing for this move.
He also advocated for core committees in Parliament to be chaired by members of the opposition. This, he says, will ensure proper checks and balances.
“Parliament is as strong as its committees make it. The structure of our committee’s system is not helping us to grow our parliament. When we have a system where all committees are headed by the members from the ruling party, certainly you will have this dividend, you will really lower the standards of parliament”.
Source: Modern Ghana
