A Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament Dr. Clement Apaak has taken a swipe at the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta for questioning why free Senior High School graduates are opposed to the controversial E-Levy.
The lawmaker says the Minister should not be surprised since the government has failed to tell Ghanaians what they have used the ghc7.62 billion they claim to have invested the free SHS for.
Finance Minister Ofori-Atta on Thursday expressed shock at the rejection of the E-levy proposal by some youth of this country including some free senior high school beneficiaries.
He asked whether they know what the cost of rejecting the E-levy will be.
He also quizzed who they except to pay for the cost of the free SHS.
Speaking at the Government’s 3rd Townhall meeting to sensitize the public on the need for the E-levy to be passed by Parliament in Tamale on Thursday February 10, he said “If I look at E-levy for instance, and I say that this year we intend to collect 7billion cedis and I look at mobile money subscribers and there are over 21million of us.
“So assuming I divide this 7billion by 21million of us , it is about 300 cedis a year for each person, divide by 12.
“So when I see the energy especially with which graduates who have gone through free senior high are against E-levy, I ask whether the they are calculating what the cost is. And I ask in truthfulness that does any graduate make more than 8000 or 5000?
“Assuming you are a graduate and you even made 100,000 cedis a year and you transfer all of that through MoMo, how much will that be? 10 per cent of 100,000 is 10,000 , so a third of that is 3000. So 3000 cedis for your roads , for your free education , for all of that and you are up in arms.
“So truly who should be paying for it? You have every responsibility to ask me to account for it. But we as a people, we can’t pretend that we don’t need these resources to do what we are doing. No graduate makes 100,000 cedis a year.”
But Dr. Apaak says the Minister should not be shocked because the “fSHS graduates know the Killer E-Levy is an extortion scheme, unjustified, and will lead to financial exclusion”.
Read his full statement below
Dear Ken Ofori-Atta,
Why are you shocked that fSHS graduates are opposed to your extortion scheme you have named E-Levy?
And why should they not reject E-levy when they know you have refused to give a detailed account of what you have used the 7.62 billion you claim to have invested in fSHS from 2017 to 2021 for?
Why should they support E-levy when this 7.62 billion is 2.4 billion more than what your own documents: 2020 Budget, 2020 Mid-Year Review Budget, 2021Budgett, and 2021 Mid-Year Budget Review prove?
Why did you report 7.62 billion (2017-2021) when a study of the above documents gives a cumulative total of 5.17 billion (2017-2021)?
What was the additional 2.4 billion used for in just one year? By the way, Mr. Ofori-Atta, remember I asked you this question on the floor of Parliament last year, you couldn’t answer, you promised to return with a detailed breakdown, I’m still waiting, Ghanaians are waiting?
The fSHS graduates like many Ghanaians know your government is unaccountable and corrupt.
The fSHS graduates know the Killer E-Levy is an extortion scheme, unjustified, and will lead to financial exclusion.
The fSHS graduates know that your claims that if your thieving scheme is not passed hospitals won’t be built, roads won’t be constructed, schools won’t be constructed, fSHS will suffer etc is a bunch of lies.
So stop wasting time and resources holding fruitless town hall meetings, the masses don’t want E-levy, they have made up thier minds, they won’t support it.
#NDC 137 NO vote against E-levy stands, not negotiable.
In Solidarity,
Dr. Clement Apaak
M.P, Builsa South
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
