Emergency Loan Approval For Kasoa And Nkrumah Circle Flyovers Was Unnecessary

Member of Finance Committee of Parliament, Hon. Kwaku Kwarteng has said he sees the emergency loan approval for the Nkrumah Circle flyover and Kasoa Interchange unnecessary as the hasty assessment of the loans can lead to great lost during future payment. Parliament has approved ten different Loan Agreements between the Government of Ghana and Seven International Financing Banks and their partners for various credit facilities to undertake some key infrastructural projects. The projects include; the construction of a flyover on the Ring Road leading to Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Interchange at Kasoa and a Water Supply System at Ekumfi Essakyire in the Central region. Addressing the issue on Oman FM, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Obuasi West Constituency said the voluminous document of the loan denied the Finance Committee of Parliament to do due diligent in assessing the loan. He stressed particularly that the urgency given to the approval of the construction of the flyover on the Ring Road leading to Kwame Nkrumah Circle and Interchange at Kasoa was not the best as though the construction is good, it can lead the country to pay huge debt in the future. He however urged the government and leaders of Parliament to change the short period emergency meeting to one week period to avoid approving wrong loan agreements that can wreck the nation�s fortunes in the future. �We don�t like it that way and so if we are in recess and the government wants us to approve loans then we should be given one week or two weeks to assess the loan agreement before approving it irrespective of government in power, every loan that needs Parliamentary approval should be done in time to avoid mistakes that could wreck the nation�s fortunes in the future; we only glance and flip through the pages without due diligent because of time constraint. �I disagreed with the reason given that the emergency meeting was due to urgency needed to approve loans to undertake some key infrastructural projects before the end of the year...governance is about carrying out duties meticulously and not wait for things to become a burden before rushing to take last-minute decision. I didn�t see the essence of the urgency to rush for the loan approval for the Kasoa Interchange and the Nkrumah circle flyover; road construction is good but if care is not taking the country will lose big money at the end of the construction due to poor assessment of the loan agreement,� he bemoaned.