The Member of Parliament for Ofoase-Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has raised strong objections to the 2026 budget estimates for the Ministry of Roads and Highways, warning that significant discrepancies in the Ministry of Finance’s reporting must be corrected before Parliament approves the requested GH¢5 billion allocation.
Contributing to the debate on the Committee’s report, Oppong Nkrumah said the Minority would support the adoption of the report only after the inconsistencies are reconciled.
Oppong Nkrumah pointed out that the Ministry of Finance’s own reporting on the utilization of 2025 funds, especially under the government’s flagship Big Push programme, contains major contradictions that undermine the credibility of the 2026 request.
“These discrepancies are very significant. Before we mount a new allocation, the foundation we are building on must be corrected,” he stated.
He argued that although more funding is needed for road development, Parliament cannot overlook the unresolved issues contained in the budget appendices.
“The Big Push was launched on 16th September. It is impossible that within two weeks, GH¢10 billion worth of certificates were issued, processed and paid,” he argued.
The Ofoase-Ayirebi MP warned that the budget data suggests an attempt to reclassify payments to old contractors under the Big Push initiative, creating a misleading impression for the public.
He referenced the new claim that GH¢3.3 billion—previously earmarked under the GH¢7 billion domestic capital allocation is now being attributed to Big Push payments.
“This becomes difficult to reconcile. It appears old contractor payments are being reported as Big Push payments, and that will be deceptive,” he cautioned.
Oppong Nkrumah further cited Appendix 2C, which states that GH¢5.1 billion had been paid from mineral royalties for Big Push works by September. But by year-end, the recorded figure would be GH¢4.9 billion, implying a claw-back of GH¢1 billion from contractors.
“Money that has been paid out cannot be clawed back from contractors. This raises serious questions about the accuracy of the reporting,” he noted.
The Ofoase-Ayirebi MP insisted Parliament steps down the request for the new GH¢5 billion allocation until all data inconsistencies are corrected.
Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, in his contribution disclosed that the Auditor-General’s validation of Road Fund certificates exposed several inconsistencies, including recycled certificates.
The Ministry, he said, will clear validated certificates by the end of December 2025.
Agbodza said several abandoned projects such as Dodowa–Ayi Mensah, Trans–Tema Corridor, and Dominase–Kokoben—are now being completed under the Big Push.
He assured of the government’s commitment to ensuring that every constituency sees real improvement in their road network.
The House subsequently approved the GH¢5 billion allocation for the Ministry of Roads and Highways for its expenditure in 2026.
