Kofi Bentil, Vice President of Imani Africa, has stated that in just 8 years, the government has blown up the financial sector of the economy as well as confidence in government securities.
Mr. Bentil who is also a private legal practitioner, in a tweet this morning, Thursday, January 19, 2023, described the situation as disturbing after indicating that it took 60 years to build the country.
“Really sad to realize that in a space of 8 years they’ve blown up the whole financial sector including confidence in government securities!! Something we took 60 years to build.”
Kofi Bentil
His comments come at the time that Zenith Bank Ghana is said to have voluntarily withdrawn its operation of securities in the capital market.
In response to this viral post which many have misinterpreted, SEC issued a public notice to clarify the bank’s action by indicating that despite the bank’s voluntary withdrawal, it remains an active operator in securities.
“Although Zenith Bank Ghana Limited voluntarily ceased its Trustee services for Unit Trust Schemes in 2022, the Bank continues to hold a Custodian license issued by the SEC under the Securities Industry Act, 2016 (Act 929) and remains an active operator in the Ghanaian Securities market and banking Industry.”
SEC
Prior Mr. Bentil’s post, communicating how bad the economy is being handled, Mr. Kwame Pianim, a renowned economist, also criticized the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta for the way and manner he is managing the economy.
According to him, strategies put in place by the Finance Minister to rescucitate the economy, in his view clearly depicts the bankrupt state of the economy.
“Ken Ofori-Atta is saying, let us do this programme but this is badly thought out, not thought through carefully. This exchange programme is like a time bomb that Ken is putting under this economy. For the next 30 to 40 years, we are going to suffer from it. It is a time bomb because he is squeezing billions of Cedis from this economy.”
Kwame Pianim
Mr Pianim who is also a founding father of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) said “For this government to allow Ken Ofori-Atta to sit in front of Ghanaians to make this proposal…
“If Ken was genuine when the Attorney General came with his legal opinion, which in the commonwealth has the force of a high court order, he would have taken this document and gone to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). If indeed it is there that IMF told him to do that, I think it is unlawful, it is unconstitutional.”
Kwame Pianim
Mr. Pianim opined that the finance minister has the unenviable reputation of going down in the country’s history as the one responsible for making government bonds not risk free.
“Government Instruments, T-Bills and government bonds are risk-free, that is why insurance companies and banks are mandated…they don’t invest in those things because as a matter of law, do not want to invest in those things because they are risk-free.
“Ken Ofori-Atta has upon unenviable reputation now of going down in our history as the one who declared government bonds not risk free. He will go down as the only Minister for Finance who has led this country into bankruptcy. That is where we are.”
Kwame Pianim
Felix Ofosu Blames The President for Ghana’s Current State
Directing his criticism at the President of the country, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, a former Deputy minister for information said the president is to blame for allowing Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta to be in office despite being the one to blame for the current state of the economy.
“If the President had a modicum of respect for Ghanaians, the people that voted for him, he would have sacked Ofori-Atta long ago for his poor performance.”
Felix Ofosu
Felix expressed disappointment in the President for failing on his words to Ghanaians to be selfless and accountable in his leadership style. He added that Akuffo-Addo has allowed Ofori-Atta to “mess up the economy”.
