The founding president of IMANI African Mr. Franklin Cujdoe has swiftly replied the Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources Mrs. Cecilia Dapaah for attacking Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang.
According to Mr. Franklin Cudjoe, the Sanitation Minister criticised John Dramani Mahama’s running mate Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang saying, her selection to partner with the NDC’s flagbearer for December 2020 elections adds nothing to the fortune of party.
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Responding to that, Franklin Cudjoe said though the sanitation minister’s claim is debatable in the political space, she should rather direct her energy towards her ministry by explaining to Ghanaians what she and her ministry contributed to Ghana’s sanitation over the past two years rather than popping her mouths into different peoples matter.
He further added that, the sanitation minister should rather be focused on issues affecting her ministry and find lasting solutions to them.
Read his full statement.
I just watched the Minister of Sanitation say Prof. Naana Opoku-Agyemang adds nothing to the fortunes of the NDC. We can debate that. It is a healthy debate. But what has the Minister added to our sanitation positively after almost two years in power? 80% of a clean Accra as her ministry alleged two days ago? What about the mountain of taxes that prevent private sector participation in waste management in Ghana.
Currently, a compactor truck imported for transporting waste attracts an import duty of 5% on the Cost Insurance and Freight (CIF) value of compactor. It also attracts NHIL levy (2.5%), GetFund Levy (2.5%); Special Import Levy (2%), ECOWAS Levy (0.5%), Exim Levy (0.75%), Processing fee (1%) and AU Levy (0.2%), which add up to 9.45% of the CIF value. In addition, the sector also pays Import VAT of 12.5% on top of these taxes.
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Currently the waste industry operates at a profit margin of 20% (From the existing data in the cost buildup of the various landfill sites). However, this profit margin is reduced to 7.5% since they treat 12.5% of their revenue as output tax. In addition to that, the sector also absorbs the non-deductible combined 5% import NHIL/GetFund levies which further reduces their profit margin to 2.5%. One Professor Mariwah recently asked me and others in a webinar I moderated that,” how do such companies accumulate enough capital to reinvest in waste collection trucks and other machinery as well as invest in Research and Development (R&D) to improvement waste management in the country?”
Ama Ofori-Antwi, Executive Secretary of ESPA recently said to me and others on webinar, ”
Upon taking up this role as Executive secretary with ESPA, I can say confidently 22 companies have collapsed since 2014 to date; we are providing essential service in this country meanwhile we are not getting any support whatsoever; if government is indeed serious about the private sector been the engine of growth, then government needs to look at us”
So, madam minister of sanitation – please focus and deal with these urgent matters too.– Franklin CUDJOE
