Tema-Ghana, Dec. 6, MNN – The Industrial and Commercial Workers’ Union (ICU) has described the freeze on employment in the 2023 budget as disastrous, “it was a recipe to derail the fight against unemployment which has risen to an all-time high level”.
Mr. Morgan Ayawine, ICU General Secretary in a statement said some provisions in the 2023 budget are inimical to the socio-economic interest of the working populace and Ghanaians in general.
The ICU in a statement said the country’s bane was the high rate of unemployment that require deliberate policy and total commitment to address it.
The ICU indicated that instead, the government has rather opted to walk the path of a freeze in employment, a move it described as most unfortunate.
It indicated that the freeze on employment would escalate the unemployment challenges, which would intend, have a negative ripple effect on the Ghanaian economy.
The ICU noted that the ramifications of unemployment on the national economy were wide and varied, as well as served as a potent invitation of social vices, especially among the youth, in society.
“The freeze on employment can never have any positive effect on the national economy; it would rather exacerbate the already precarious economic situation in the country.
“We believe that this is well-known to economic analysts. So, the ICU-Ghana finds it strange that such a proposition should find space in the 2023 budget,” the statement stated.
The ICU suggested that, in the best interest of the national economy, and for the benefit of the unemployed, especially the young graduates, the government should take a second look at the freeze of employment in the civil and public service, to alleviate the plight of the unemployed graduates.
Touching on the 2.5 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) increment contained in the 2023 budget, it stated that looking at the current economic hardship confronting the ordinary man, the government should have reduced or abolished some of the nuisance taxes.
The statement said such an act would have ameliorated the suffering, instead of worsening the tax burden on the citizenry with an increase in the VAT.
On the reduction of the e-levy from 1.5 percent to one percent, it said it was welcoming news adding, however, that the removal of the threshold would not inure to the benefit of the ordinary man.
The ICU, therefore, suggested that the government reconsidered its decision on the e-levy.
The ICU lauded and commended the government for collaborating with the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) to produce printing papers locally to feed the local market.
It observed that the move would not only benefit the nation in foreign exchange appropriation for the import of printing papers but also create employment for the youth and maximize GCGL’s profitability.
The ICU also commended Ghanaian farmers for their contributions towards nation-building as the country observes the National Farmers Day celebration.
“Indeed, the agricultural sector which encompasses food, and cocoa continue to remain the key driver of the Ghanaian economy despite the oil find and exploration.
“We could not have progressed as a nation without the toil and sacrifices of our farmers who opted for farming to feed the nation as opposed to clamouring for white-colour jobs as some of their compatriots do,” the statement stated.
