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03.05.2011 Business & Finance

Labour calls for transparency in oil resources

03.05.2011 LISTEN
By Story: Timothy Gobah & Musah Yahaya Jafaru - Daily Graphic

Organised labour has called on the government to ensure transparency in the administration of the oil resources to enable the country to derive maximum benefit for the good of the people.

It said all measures must be put in place to ensure that the oil find in Ghana became a blessing rather than a curse.

The Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Mr Kofi Asamoah, made the call when he addressed this year’s parade of workers on May Day in Accra on the theme, “Decent Work for Sustainable Economic Development”.

He said Ghana had no reason to fail because there were many examples from other oil-producing countries across the world from which the country could learn.

Mr Asamoah used the occasion to draw the attention of the government to the deplorable situation at the PSC Tema Shipyard, stressing, “We hold the view that PSC Tema Shipyard can add value to the oil and gas industry if it operates efficiently.”

He further called for the immediate implementation of the Chris Ackumey Report to save the shipyard from imminent collapse.

“We are also anxiously looking forward to the resuscitation and expansion of the operations of the Ghana Railway Company to facilitate the movement of persons and haulage of goods in the country,” he said.

Mr Asamoah called on the government not to renew the contract for Aqua Vitens Rand Limited (AVRL) when the management contract elapsed at the end of the month.

He said the people of Ghana had been subjected to water crisis for a very long time, with majority of them going through daily frustrations in search of water.

He recalled that when the private management contract was being introduced, workers and their unions expressed reservations about it, adding, “Five years into the management contract, we have not seen any improvement in the quality of service in the water sector.”

On politics, Mr Asamoah said, “As we enter the political campaign season for the 2012 elections, we expect our political parties, the government, the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, such as our vibrant and varied civil society organisations and the citizens of Ghana, to exhibit maturity.”

He said the electoral process must be fair and transparent, underscoring the need for competing parties and their presidential candidates to engage in debates over the main social and economic issues.

“We expect a clear vision for the future of Ghana and concrete policy alternatives that can transform our economy into a true middle-income country where social equity and justice prevail,” he said.

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