Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, the government’s spokesperson on Governance and Security, has promised that no politician will have access to IMF monies.
According to him, the funds will be used appropriately because the program will be evaluated twice a year.
“The IMF money will not be used by any politician in the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, either for election or the influence of electioneering. It is a very strict programme.”
Palgrave Boakye-Danquah
With a statement released on Thursday, Ghana received the Executive Board of the Fund’s approval on Wednesday, May 17.
At a news conference, the central bank Governor; Dr. Ernest Kwamina Yedu Addison, the Minister of Finance; Ken Ofori-Atta, and the IMF mission chief; Stéphane Roudet, made the official announcement.
Out of a total of $3 billion requested, in the first tranche of distribution, the nation will receive $600 million.
A misuse of the monies, according to Mr. Boakye-Danquah, who has declared his intention to run for the Abuakwa North New Patriotic Party (NPP) seat, will have grave ramifications for the nation.
“This IMF programme is going to be reviewed every six months,” he observed, therefore, “it will change everything if government does not use the money prudently”.
He expressed confidence in President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s ability to uphold his end of the bargain by delivering a strong economy to the succeeding administration on January 7, 2025.
NDC Predicts Ghanaians To Face Hardships
The Minority in Parliament is worried that Ghanaians, particularly the young people, will suffer unjustly as a result of the $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund.
The Minority in a statement signed by the Minority Leader, Cassiel Ato Forson, slammed the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government for failing to heed the advice of the minority caucus on the deteriorating state of the economy to seek an IMF bailout to place the economy on a path to recovery earlier.
“The Minority has on countless occasions cautioned this government that the fruits of its crass mismanagement of Ghana’s economy through wanton misuse of borrowed funds for consumption purposes had long crystallized into a crisis. We urged the government to immediately seek the Fund’s support long ago, a call that was flatly disregarded.
“The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government’s continuous denial over the true state of Ghana’s economy, and their strenuous attempts to shift responsibility and blame external factors have been clear from day one. Despite all the manipulations of the data to hide the true state of the economy, the real situation on the ground has no doubt subsequently compelled them to arrive at the doorsteps of the IMF like a patient in an emergency ambulance, desperate for immediate resuscitation.”
Cassiel Ato Forson
According to Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has committed to raise utility rates every three months, starting from last year as part of its proposal to the IMF to secure this deal. He reminded Ghanaians that the cumulative increase in electricity prices since September 2022 is 75.32% (27% in September 2022, 29.96% in the final quarter of 2022, and 18.36% just a few days ago).
“Let us brace ourselves for the full consequences of this IMF deal, which will, without doubt, bite hard on Ghanaians, especially the youth. This is not a counsel of despair, but a reality that will soon dawn on all of us.”
Cassiel Ato Forson
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