Deputy ministerial nomination withdrawn

The nomination of Dr. Nartey Siaw-Sappore as Deputy Minister of Communications has been withdrawn.

This was contained in a communication from President John Evans Atta Mills, addressed to and read on the floor of Parliament by Mrs. Joyce Bamford-Addo, Speaker, on Tuesday.

No reasons have been given.
Earlier, at the commencement, the Public Business, the Airport Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2009, was taken through the First Reading. The proposed amendment to the bill is expected to review airport taxes in line with this year's budget.

The expected increase of the tax, fixed at 50.00 dollars to be adjusted to 75.00 dollars, is part of some revenue enhancement measures.

It is also to ensure the provision of increased security services of the airport in the context of the current global security risk faced at international airports all over the world.

The House later began the debate on the 2009 budget with Mr Moses Asaga, NDC member for Nabdam, saying government had inherited a challenging budget but was determined to fix the shattered economy and was cutting down on domestic borrowing.

Dr Kojo Appiah-Kubi, NPP member for Atwima-Kwanoma, who touched on poverty, said government should not put itself out as an agent of poverty reduction but must be seen as a facilitator of the process by empowering and assisting the private sector and individuals for job creation and the growth of the economy.

He said government should also work with a development policy and not an NDC manifesto such as the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy document two, which comes to an end this year.

Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister of Communications, touched on the communication sector saying, teledensity had increased but it was mainly urban based but government was committed to extending fixed telephony to the rural areas.

Mr Emmanuel Bandua, NDC member for Biakoye, urged government to develop a plan to deal with bumper harvest and create more market avenues for farmers to sell their produce to avoid wastage.

He said just as the Ghana Food Distribution Corporation in the past was a ready market for some farmers to sell their produce, a system should be developed to sustain the agricultural sector by helping farmers deal with buffer stocks.

GNA