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people where they should go. So the emphasis is on infrastructure. Unless you pay attention to infrastructure and cut out the frills, you are going to always be caught in this vicious cycle. Nii Acquayefio, Accra (text message): What change will we see in Ghana when we vote for you? What will you demand from road contractors to ensure better quality roads? Prof. Mills: You will see a new type of government. I am going to be truthful. When the road contractor is given a contract and the corrupt official asks for a percentage, can you complain if he does shoddy work? Again where the contractor has not been paid for a long time, how do you expect him to stay in business and pay his workers so that they will give of their best? I think that if you have a responsible government; a government which is not going to run after contractors and demand percentages, and where the right atmosphere is created, contractors will have little to complain about. Dr. Audrey Gadzekpo, University of Ghana: Prof Mills, you outlined a lot of lofty and ambitious things you want to do in education and agriculture particularly. Have you done any costing for these things? Often times our politicians give us promises and when they come into power they tell us the reality is that the national budget cannot support it. Have you done any costing for expanding the school feeding programme, for increasing classrooms, for giving pupils free school uniforms, for making sure that everybody has access to primary education and for irrigating some stretches of land? Prof. Mills: I have taken these things into consideration. That is why I said that we are going to rely on increased domestic savings, which we are going to invest in the productive sectors. If we look at our current domestic primary balance, and if we weigh revenues against expenditures, in 2007, this government was in the negative of 6.7% of GDP. In 2006 it was 4.6%. If you look at the gap between revenue and expenditure, the government was overspending. Where you have a situation as in 2007 where the fiscal deficit is almost 10% of GDP, the government cannot meet its performance targets. 18
It tells you that where you have a government that is overspending; that is not saving, you have a problem investing in the important sectors. We have to cut out the filth; we will begin from somewhere. But I have no doubt whatsoever that if we are able to increase domestic savings, and I think that with our programme, detailed in our manifesto, we will be able to do it. I am not talking about some other revenues but I think that in our system there is a lot that needs to be done. You take Customs for example, I know that we are capable and that is why I told you about the exemptions scheme but we seem to be looking the other way. I have been Commissioner for the Internal Revenue Service before and I believe that given the right kind of impetus, the right kind of incentives, we will be able to do more than we are doing. So I think that it’s a question of tightening expenditures, cutting out the waste and maximising your revenue and you will be able to do more. Kwesi Gyasi: Prof, in advanced economies, the health of people running for public office is public property. There has been a lot of speculation about your health and if you were reported correctly, you have said that everybody has a hospital card. How has been your medical condition in the past 2 years and what do your doctors say about your health? Prof. Mills: Atta Mills is not a super human being. At the moment I am fit and doing my work just like any other human being. But like you or like anyone here, nobody can say when the good Lord will call him. I may live to be 80 to 90 years or I may go next week. It is only God who knows. So I leave everything in the hands of God. Now that I am fit and doing my job, the rest is in the hands of God. Network of Women’s Rights Organisations: We got together and invited all the various political parties to a lunch where we informed them about the work that we have done around the Women’s Manifesto for Ghana. We gave them a fact sheet which also summarised the main demands contained in the document and we also gave them copies of the document. So I wanted to find out from you what we 19
Page 1 and 2: Delivering On Your Promises: IEA Gh
Page 3 and 4: The Institute of Economic Affairs (
Page 5 and 6: PREFACE The Institute of Economic A
Page 7 and 8: 1. AN EVENING ENCOUNTER WITH PRESID
Page 9 and 10: consider this unacceptable. Even mo
Page 11 and 12: HIV/AIDS. Indeed, about a week ago
Page 13 and 14: ated with its production and distri
Page 15 and 16: ing glory to the efforts by the GNP
Page 17 and 18: QUESTION AND ANSWER SECTION Matilda
Page 19 and 20: youth, who are the future. Here we
Page 21 and 22: Now you ask about the language we a
Page 23: teaching will no longer be taken in
Page 27 and 28: Ernest Owusu Aboagye, Pharmaceutica
Page 29 and 30: their full dignity. We have a lot o
Page 31 and 32: of you come to me under cover of da
Page 33 and 34: Harry Williams: Prof. you spoke ext
Page 35 and 36: Akwasi Sarpong, JOY FM: Prof Mills,
Page 37 and 38: know that it is not the state’s d
Page 39 and 40: Indeed we have cases where there is
Page 41 and 42: what you are saying. That is what m
Page 43 and 44: teachers, the teacher is at the cen
Page 45 and 46: issue if we think that NHIS alone i
Page 47 and 48: get enough. We’ve already said th
Page 49 and 50: As a young lecturer I used to think
Page 51 and 52: • We look at the judiciary - is t
Page 53 and 54: Dr. Nduom that the time has come wh
Page 55 and 56: Prof. Mills: I have two. I would ha
Page 57 and 58: Question: According to the 2000 Pop
Page 59 and 60: Prof. Mills: I will say that afford
Page 61 and 62: Question: You have each touched on
Page 63 and 64: There is the perception that we are
Page 65 and 66: with you. You may have heard our di
Page 67: THE INSTITUTE OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS I

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