The Member of Parliament for Builsa South and Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament, Dr Clement Apaak, has stated that should the National Democratic Congress (NDC) win the 2024 election, it will reallocate and reduce government spending to enhance education.
According to him, over the past three to four years, the Office of Government Machinery has consistently received no less than GH₵1 billion annually, with this year’s allocation exceeding GH₵2 billion.
Dr Apaak emphasised that a future NDC government would redirect and reduce this budget to finance the education of first-year students.
During the NDC’s manifesto presentation on August 12, the party’s flagbearer, John Mahama, announced that first-year tertiary students would be exempt from paying academic fees.
Mr Mahama explained that this initiative is part of a broader effort by the NDC to alleviate the financial burden on parents supporting their children’s education.
Speaking on JoyNews AM Show, Mr Apaak said, “We will cut expenditure because, if you look at the Office of Government Machinery – this is essentially the Presidency – indeed up to today, the Minority has never fully appreciated and we do not believe that the quantum of money that goes to the Office of the President is needed.”
The Builsa South MP criticized the current NPP government for requesting inflated funds for the Office of Government Machinery, alleging that these resources are being used to support partisan activities.
He contrasted this with the NDC’s approach, pointing out that during their time in office, the NDC never requested anywhere near GH₵1 billion for the same office.
Dr. Apaak contended that these excessive allocations could be trimmed and redirected to cover the expenses of first-year students’ fees.
“There is a lot of waste in the system. Obviously, we would not be spending some GH₵339,000,000 to finance the construction of a cathedral. We would not be paying a CEO and a staff for an inland port, a port in Keta, so to speak, for almost eight years with no work done. “