Minority Leader in Parliament, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has raised concerns regarding the budget allocated to the Office of the President. His comments come in the wake of Parliament's approval of GH₵2 billion for that office in the 2024 budget.

Ato Forson specifically highlighted the capital expenditure of GH₵67 million at the Office of the President, expressing uncertainty about the specific items or purposes for which this amount is allocated.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, December 21, Dr. Forson stated, “How many cars are they buying to the extent that they have to budget 67 million Ghana cedis for capital expenditure?

“Mr. Speaker, largely, this amount is for the purchase of cars. My concern is, is it because the election is approaching, and that is why the budget for the office of government machinery has increased from 1.4 billion to 2 billion,” he queried.

Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, went on to question the significant increase in the budget for the Office of the President. He noted that the budget for the office has surged from approximately GH₵400 million to GH₵2 billion.

Particularly, he raised concerns about the goods and services segment, which alone amounts to GH₵450.6 million.

“What are they using this money for? Mr. Speaker, this is according to the budget statement before us. These are things that I believe this House must demand answers from the Office of the President.

“Mr. Speaker, most of this expenditure is concentrated in the Chief of Staff's office, particularly the Special Operations account. The details, as presented by the Office of the President in the document submitted to the Finance Committee, are something that should concern all of us,” Dr. Forson said.

Ranking Member on the Finance Committee in Parliament, Isaac Adongo, has accused the Office of the President of engaging in reckless and irresponsible expenditure following the approval of GH₵2 billion for the office in the 2024 budget. He specifically pointed out that the Chief of Staff's office, the Press Office, and the Cabinet Secretariat under the Office of the President were identified by the Finance Committee for overspending their budget.

Adongo raised questions about the source of the additional funds spent by the Office and urged them to demonstrate leadership by avoiding overspending.