The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Ibrahim Awal, has appealed to Members of Parliament (MPs) to work together for the common interest of the development of the country.
He said that it was important for MPs to put the interest of the nation over and above any parochial and political interest.
Dr Awal therefore pleaded with MPs especially the opposition MPs to reconsider their intention to reject 2022 budget but rather pass it for government to continue the implementation of its policies for the betterment of the people of the country.
He made this call when he interacted with a cross section of journalists in Tamale on Saturday.
The interaction which was on the 2022 budget statement and economic policy of the government emphasised on the need for journalists to rally the population in support of the budget statement.
Dr Awal said it was important for the media to educate the people on the usefulness of taxes especially the E-Levy.
He mentioned that one of the surest ways government can bring the needed development to the people was to generate enough revenue.
He indicated that the revenue to be generated through the tax measures would be used to create jobs for the unemployed youth.
Dr Awal hinted that government would continue the consultations ongoing to ensure the approval of the budget.
He said the good policies of the government such as Free Senior High School, Planting for Food and Jobs and Agenda 111 would be affected negatively if government failed to generate needed revenue.
Dr Awal said government was working to create tourism sites in every region in the country and the E-Levy would help mobilise money to achieve it.
Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Shani Alhassan Shaibu, said the cry against poor roads and other developmental challenges can be addressed if the E-Levy in the budget is accepted.
He said the toll levy was not generating enough revenue to fix the bad roads in the country.
It would be recalled that the Minister of Finance presented the 2022 budget statement and economic policy of the government to Parliament last week.
The budget generated heated debates in parliament and outside.
The heated debates is as result of the E-levy of 1.75 per cent.
The Minority in Parliament which served notice of their intention not to support the budget actually carried out the threat as they rejected it on the floor last Friday.
However, the Majority in parliament described it as unconstitutional.
FROM YAKUBU ABDUL-MAJEED, TAMALE
