Ofori-Atta's record speaks for itself, Oppong Nkrumah
Mahama should have fired Terkper and himself, Info min
Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has berated calls by ex-President John Dramani Mahama for Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to be sacked.
He said that the former Minister for Finance, Seth Terkper, was not sacked when Ghana went to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under Mahama and therefore calls by the former president for Ofori-Atta to be sacked are unfounded.
In a Peace FM interview monitored by GhanaWeb, Oppong Nkrumah added that the current finance minister’s records show his competence.
"... Seth Terkper, who was in charge of fiscal policy during that time (the era of Mahama), was the same person who led the engagements with the fund. He shared data and all with the fund, Mahama did not sack him. Mahama said no to the IMF but he did not sack his finance minister?
“If you compare (the two instances),the (persons calling for Ofori-Atta’s sack) are changing the goal post. Ofori-Atta’s track record from 2017 to 2019 when there was no crisis is evident to everybody.
“(His record) in 2021 when the COVID-19 crisis was going down and Ghana’s economy was recovering is evident to everybody. Today in 2022, we are in crisis, our domestic solutions are not enough to resolve the crisis and we are seeking some assistance. I didn’t think this is reason enough for Mahama to call for the sack of the finance minister. Then he should have fired Seth Terkper or himself when Ghana went to the IMF under his watch,” he said in Twi.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has urged President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta over economic mismanagement.
Delivering an address on the state of the Ghanaian economy at the inaugural launch of Think Progress Ghana, Mr. Mahama painted a gloomy picture of the economy.
The ex-president said that under Ofori-Atta’s watch, the public debt has exceeded GH¢400 billion, if debts on the books of some SPVs and statutory funds, which this government seeks to exclude, are factored in.
This, Mr. Mahama noted translates into a debt to GDP ratio of over 80%, well beyond the red line of 70% at which lower-middle-income countries are declared as debt distressed.
He further said that multiple international financial institutions continue to rank Ghana among countries that are likely to end up like Sri Lanka and default on their debt repayment.
Watch the minister’s interview in the video below:
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