Gold Board concerns did not justify holding up law – Adongo

Parliament’s Finance Committee Chairman, Isaac Adongo, has defended the passage of the law establishing the Gold Board, saying concerns about some provisions did not warrant delaying it.

Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition, he said the minority supported the bill in principle. Its reservations concerned specific provisions.

“The passage of the bill that led to the establishment of the gold board, for instance, from a political perspective, our colleagues do not disagree in principle, but their side of the divide were not comfortable with certain provisions.”

Mr Adongo argued that Parliament needed to allow the institution to begin its work. He pointed to what he described as its impact as justification for that decision.

“Nevertheless, we needed to get that act out of the way, and you have seen the monumental impact of the gold board, so we needed to first get a handle on it.”

He said passing the law did not close the door to changes. Any weaknesses identified during implementation could be addressed through a review.

“Of course, over time, there will be some lapses that can be identified, and a review is possible at any point in time.”

Mr Adongo also expressed confidence that minority members would support amendments if the executive returned to Parliament with proposals to revise certain clauses.

His defence came amid questions about whether he could challenge government proposals despite his party being in power.

He said the committee’s decisions went beyond the chairman and reflected scrutiny from both sides.

“The reason is that almost every bill that has come to us has been scrutinised on a bipartisan basis.”

He cited the presence of ranking member and former Finance Minister Dr Amin Adam, deputy ranking member Dr Stephen Amoah, and Dr Gideon Boako.

Mr Adongo maintained that disagreements did not necessarily signal opposition to an entire proposal. They also allowed members to put their concerns on record.

“Those disagreements are basically giving an opportunity to members on both sides to air their views about what ought to be done, but largely we agree on most of the things.”