The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, unleashed a blistering critique of the 2026 Budget on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, November 13, 2025 demanding answers from Finance Minister, Cassiel Ato Forson, over what he described as major inconsistencies, unanswered questions and a conspicuous refusal to account for funds allegedly flowing from the presidency to National Democratic Congress (NDC) constituencies.
Reacting immediately after the budget was presented, Afenyo-Markin said the minister appeared to have changed a little, since assuming office earlier in the year as finance minister, insisting that Dr Ato Forson had returned to Parliament with what he described as “part two” of the same lamentations he offered during his first budget encounter.
“In March, this year, when the finance minister started his lamentation, we were minded to forgive him because he was new on the job.
“Today, after several months on the job, he came to repeat the same lamentation, part two of his lamentation,” he stated.
He argued that the minister’s address failed to inspire confidence, adding that the empty public gallery during the budget presentation was proof that the business community no longer believed in the minister’s economic prescriptions.
“Mr Speaker, the minister may be minded to see the empty public gallery. The business community decided to abandon him. All these empty chairs, this is not what we’ve known in the past,” he said.
Afenyo-Markin accused the minister of offering “a tall list of allocations” that were incomplete, particularly, regarding financial flows at the presidency.
He referenced the NDC’s own Deputy General Secretary, Mustapha Gbande, who recently claimed publicly that every NDC constituency receives GH¢20,000 monthly from the Presidency, an amount that cumulatively totals GH¢66 million annually.
According to the Minority Leader, this revelation raises critical questions that the Finance Minister’s budget failed to address.
“In the 2025 budget that he brought to this House, we had the Director of Treasury at the Jubilee House, at the Presidency, who publicly said every month the presidency gives 20,000 Ghana Cedis to each constituency. A total of 66 million! Where did they get that money from?” he asked.
He emphasised that Mr Gbande had openly stated that the funds “come straight from the president,” yet the finance minister failed to explain this expenditure or show where it appeared in the national budget.
“The minister of finance has not accounted for this. How that money is given, time will tell,” he added.
Afenyo-Markin further criticised the minister for what he described as disregard for Parliament’s oversight role, stating that the budget presentation did not reflect adequate consultation with ministers or MPs.
“Parliament is the only body that does oversight. Parliament is an important organ of state. When the minister himself is a member of parliament and fails to recognize parliament and its work, and you say we should hear you… look at the ministers and their faces,” he said.
He claimed that even Cabinet ministers appeared unfamiliar with the figures the Finance Minister presented, suggesting a breakdown in coordination within government.
“When he was mentioning some of the figures, the ministers were looking as if this was the first time they were seeing the figures.
“Was there any consultation? Did they even know what was going to be in the budget?” the Minority Leader queried.
Background
Afenyo-Markin’s concerns stem from statements made by Mustapha Gbande, NDC Deputy General Secretary (Operations), who claimed that every constituency receives GH¢20,000 monthly from the presidency to support the party’s activities.
He said the money is sent “straight from the president” and is used to service party operations nationwide.
The Chronicle also sighted a video on Saturday, November 1, where Mustapha Gbande asserted that the funds were directly sourced from the president and are used to service the party’s operations across the country.
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