A member of Parliament's Finance Committee, Dr Stephen Amoah says government has what it takes to create one million jobs for the youth in the next two and a half years.

Speaking on PM Express on Monday, Dr Stephen Amoah stated that although government could generate enough revenue, borrowing to undertake this project cannot be wrong.

"We are still collecting revenue. I don't think raising 100 billion is too big for any government that is serious to concentrate on (employment). I know that our budgetary revenue generation has two major arms, taxes and debt. The situation in which we find ourselves, revenue, we may not meet our benchmark so we will have to inevitably and uncontrollably rely on debt and there is nothing wrong with it if you don't have any other option. So we shouldn't create jobs?" he quizzed.

According to him, in some years to come, these jobs created will provide the government with enough revenue through taxation, to settle its outstanding debts.

"It is rather good for a long term goal, create the jobs today, the jobs could expand the industries, you generate revenue to stabilize the economy. That is the best mechanization of harmonizing your fiscal policy parameters. It is done everywhere in the world. You can't say that because there is a problem, you can't generate revenue, and your debt stock going up so you sit idle and die? You will not create jobs? No, what you have to do is not to increase the burden on the people and that is why we are not trying to take taxes from them," he explained.

But former Deputy Information Minister, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, described the objective of the Akufo-Addo-led administration to create one million jobs for the youth in the next two and a half years, as impossible.

Speaking on the show as well, he argued that the country's increasing public debt stock makes it a herculean task for government aside from the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, revealing that government will not borrow to undertake this initiative.

"In 2016, when the NPP was all over the place shouting and condemning us (NDC) for mismanaging the economy allegedly, our deficit was 6.3 per cent. It is possible to manage the pandemic and keep the economy in check. Even without the pandemic, in 2018, the deficit was 7 per cent, in 2019, it was 7.5 per cent. Higher than what they came to meet.

"For the Finance Minister to come to Parliament and say that he is going to create one million jobs and go ahead to say that he will not borrow to do this, it is an almost impossible task to achieve," he said.

Nonetheless, the MP for Nhyiaseso Constituency, Dr Amoah was optimistic that government can create the promised job opportunities since it created more jobs in the agricultural sector during the onset of the pandemic.

"When we said we were going to do free SHS, our brothers said it was not going to be possible but now it is possible," he added.

Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, presenting the 2021 Mid-Year review of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government and Supplementary Estimate for the financial year, revealed that government’s expenditure exceeded total revenue generated from January to June this year, by GH¢22.3billion.

However, he stated that the country’s transformation agenda is still on course, therefore, pledging that government will create a million job opportunities for the youth in the next two and a half years.