Hon Matthew Nyindam has urged Ghana’s Minister for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, to prioritise reducing data costs and improving digital access rather than pursuing what he described as controversial policy proposals.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story programme on Thursday, Matthew Nyindam, the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Information and Communications Committee, said Ghanaians expected the government to focus on easing the cost of digital services and expanding opportunities in the technology sector.
“We must get serious in this country. People queued to vote for the NDC and for the minister to come and serve them better,” Nyindam said. “I will appeal to him to focus more on how best we can reduce data, how best we can make phone calls affordable.”
His comments came after George disclosed that the government was considering a policy that would require users to verify their identity before accessing pornographic websites in Ghana.
The minister has said the proposal is intended to protect children from exposure to explicit content and would align Ghana with measures adopted in some other jurisdictions.
Nyindam questioned the policy’s relevance, arguing that it offered little direct benefit to ordinary citizens facing high communication costs and economic pressures.
He said the government should instead focus on issues such as reducing data prices, creating jobs in the digital economy and advancing flagship initiatives including the proposed “One Million Coders” programme.
“The young men who voted for him, the one million coders they’ve promised — how far has he been able to do that?” Nyindam said.
The lawmaker also criticised what he described as delays in the government’s legislative agenda for the communications sector, noting that several promised bills had yet to be introduced in Parliament.
The debate highlights growing scrutiny of the government’s digital policy priorities as consumers and businesses continue to call for more affordable internet access and broader technology-sector reforms.
Source:myjoyonline
