Road tolls: Minority pushes for de-capping of road fund
The Minority in Parliament is calling on the government to completely de-cap the Road Fund, allowing it to solely finance road projects and pay contractor debts.
According to the minority, it will support the reinstatement of road tolls only if the government accepts its suggestion.
It comes on the back of the proposed increase in rates following government’s decision to reintroduce road tolls after abolishing the collection in 2021.
The Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment Act, 2017 (Act 947) of the constitution gives the finance minister the authority to commit a portion of road tolls to the Road Fund managed by the Ministry of Roads and Highways and use the remainder for other purposes.
Governs Kwame Agbodza, the Minority Chief Whip and a Ranking Member of Parliament’s Roads and Transport Committee, told Citi News that it will only accept the government’s decision to reintroduce road tolls if it is willing to de-cap the tolls.
“The only way the Minority will be interested in this discussion at all, is to get an assurance that the road fund will totally be de-capped so that the numerous contractors who have worked and whose certificates are lying in the Ministry and other agencies will have the ability to get their monies paid to them so that they can be back to site to fix roads. We are not going to support government to bring the toll back if it will only bring GHS 2.4 billion and then only GH¢1 billion is used for roads and the remainder used for the National Cathedral, we will not be part of this.”
Source: Citinewsroom
