NPP MPs want Finance Minister out of office
About 80 MPs of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) want the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta sacked as Finance Minister.
The NPP MPs per reports, held a press conference on Tuesday, October 25, to impress on the President to relieve Mr Ofori-Atta of his duties or risk losing their support for government business going forward.
They also want the Minister of State in charge of Finance at the Office of the President to be subjected to a similar fate.
According to MP for Asante Akyem North, Andy Appiah-Kubi, the call has been communicated to the Presidency through the leadership but to no avail.
The MPs say their sentiments reflect the position of the NPP caucus in the House.
This has been a unanimous call for the opposition legislators who have constantly called for the Minister’s head with some civil society organisations joining the fray at a point.
One of the key cards on the table for these majority MPs is the approval of the 2022 budget which will be pivotal to expenditure, especially at a time when government finances are in limbo.
The development comes amid a worsening economic downturn in the country as the Ministry looks to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a crucial bailout.
Ghana‘s worsening economic conditions attributed to failure to sign onto DSSI
Meanwhile, Ghana’s worsening macroeconomic conditions such as the fast depreciation of its currency, has been attributed to the failure of the country to sign onto the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) developed by the IMF and World Bank.
Signing onto the DSSI which expired in December 2021, would have offered Ghana the opportunity to freeze debt servicing, whiles they concentrate on using their minimum funds to deal with other commitments.
Responding to questions at a media engagement in Washington DC on suggestions that the Bretton Wood institutions are not doing enough to help cancel the debts of some African countries in distress, President of the World Bank, David Malpass expressed disappointment that some developing countries like Ghana did not sign onto the DSSI, which would have provided some financial space for the repayment of loans.
“Kristalina (IMF Boss) and I were talking yesterday with the Group about the Common Framework. If countries could have a situation where the common framework clause allow the country to have a standstill on debt, that would help the country choose their path forward on debts restructuring. That would mean they would get a break on debt repayment while they work on debt restructuring.
“Unfortunately, Nigeria and Ghana did not ask for the common framework treatment (DSSI),” Mr Malpass stated, adding that the situation has made it difficult for such countries to overcome the negative impact of current global economic hardship on trade and currencies of developing countries.
