The report of increase in fuel price ahead of the much-anticipated removal of the Price Stabilisation and Recovering levy of 16 pesewas in the price build-up of fuel at the pumps is yet to take effect is one of the trending stories in the Ghanaian press on Tuesday.
The Ghanaian Times reports that the much-anticipated removal of the Price Stabilisation and Recovering levy of 16 pesewas in the price build-up of fuel at the pumps is yet to take effect even as the second pricing window commences.
This is because Parliament is yet to give the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) the approval needed to scrap the levy.
While many were expecting the scrapping of the levy to take effect in the second window of October which started on October 16, another round of increases at the pumps this past weekend has pushed a litre of petrol and diesel to GH¢6.80 at some pumps.
The NPA on October 11, 2021, disclosed that President Akufo-Addo had approved the removal of the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levies (PRSL) on petrol, diesel, and LPG for two months.
The authority added that the approval followed its advice to the Energy Minister for the government’s intervention to mitigate the impact of rising prices of petroleum products on the world market on consumers.
Speaking to Citi Business News on the matter, Head of Communication of the NPA, Mohammed Abdul-Kudus noted that Parliament “has not given the NPA the all-clear to remove the levy hence the increases we are seeing at some filling stations.”
“It would have to take Parliament to give us the clearance to now remove it from the price build-up. Because Parliament has not been able to give us the all-clear, and since the second window is supposed to ensue from October 16, regrettably the recent increases at the pumps by some of the OMC’s are inclusive of the levy. The levy will only be excluded after Parliament has given us the all-clear,” he said.
Brent Crude Oil, a key determinant in the price of fuel, ended September selling at around 77 dollars a barrel, settled at a three-year high above $85 a barrel on Friday, October 15, 2021.
The newspaper says that the number of jobs advertised in selected print and online media, which gauges labour demand in the economy, declined in the second quarter of 2021 relative to what was observed in the second quarter of 2020, data from the Bank of Ghana has revealed.
In total, 8,251 job adverts were recorded in the second quarter of 2021 as compared with 9,582 in the second quarter of 2020, indicating a decline of 13.9%.
Similarly, the number of job vacancies advertised in the review period dipped by 6.7 per cent from 8,840 recorded for the first quarter of 2021.
The decrease in the number of jobs advertised, the report from the Bank of Ghana reflected the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on businesses.
The Services Sector maintained its dominance as the leading job-providing sector in the economy, accounting for 79.0 percent of total job adverts recorded in the second quarter of 2021. This is compared with a share of 80.8 percent it recorded in the second quarter of 2020.
Industry followed with a share of 17.4 percent, up from 15.2 percent in quarter 2, 2020, while the Agriculture Sector accounted for 3.6 percent of the job adverts during the period, compared with 4.0 percent of total job adverts recorded for the second quarter of 2020.
Further analysis revealed that the main requirements for skilled employees were tertiary education qualification(s) and a minimum of three years’ working experience.
This category, classified as Professionals and Technicians, collectively accounted for 51.4% of total jobs advertised during the second quarter of 2021, relative to 49.7% recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2020.
This was followed by the categories classified as Sales & Other Service Workers (30.2 percent in quarter 2, 2021 vs. 35.5 percent in quarter 2, 2020), Artisans & Machine Operators (9.0 percent in Q2:2021 vs. 8.6 percent in Q2:2020), Secretarial & Clerical Staff (6.9% in Q2:2021 vs. 4.7 percent in Q2:2020) and ‘Others’ (2.5% in Q2:2021 vs. 1.5% in Q2:2020).
The Ghanaian Times also reports that the aggrieved 499 candidates who sat for this year’s Ghana School of Law entrance Examination but did not ‘pass’ to be admitted have called on the powers that be in the country to ensure that they were admitted to pursue the professional law programme.
The authorities they called on include President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, the Chief Justice, KwasiAnin-Yeboah, the Ghana Bar Association, religious and traditional leaders.
According to the aggrieved 499 candidates, they passed the entrance exams in line with the admission criteria set by the General Legal Council (GLC) and the Independent Examination Committee (IEC) before they sat for the paper.
They claimed the pass mark for the entrance exam since it was introduced was 50 percent from the two sections as communicated by the IEC ahead of the exams.
The IEC had explained that the pass mark must be a cumulative score of at least 25 percent from either section of the paper.
But at a press conference in Accra yesterday, the aggrieved candidates said the IEC has given them a raw deal because at the time of sitting for the exams, the pass mark announced by the Committee, as advertised in the Daily Graphic on May 14, 2021 was 50 percent without any further clarification.
“It is thus fair to conclude that the IEC/GLC has, from all indications, made representation to candidates and stakeholders that the pass mark for the entrance exams is 50 percent and over and this meant a cumulative figure of 50 percent.
GIK/APA