IMF massaging Ghana's economic outlook; NPP must bow its head in shame – Adongo

The Deputy Ranking Member on the Finance Committee of Ghana's Parliament, Isaac Adongo says the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) assessment of Ghana's economy failed to reflect the country’s real fiscal situation.

Isaac Adongo feels the IMF got it wrong when it attributed Ghana's economic woes to COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war because to him, the economy was already in tatters before the two situations.

“The IMF is managing the situation so that they do not create fear and panic that will further exacerbate the issue. It is very clear that, the Ghanaian economy was already suffering internal and external vulnerability before COVID-19 and Russia-Ukraine war”, he said on Eyewitness News.

Isaac Adongo, the Bolga Central Member of Parliament also accused the Akufo-Addo government of conniving with the IMF to paint a gloomy picture of the economy.

He said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) should not be forgiven for its comments made against the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for seeking an IMF bailout in the past.

“It is dishonesty for people who have profited from propaganda; people who have come to power on the back of the deception of the Ghanaian people that going to IMF defines incompetence, to now be turning around to say that we should not have that debate. Didn’t Dr. Bawumia describe John Mahama with unprintable words for taking Ghana to the IMF?”

“I want to say that the NPP should bow its head in shame for bringing us here. They want to now use PR and connive with the IMF to double speak. The truth is that, they have mismanaged the economy because the IMF has a dossier from 2019 that the country was heading in the wrong direction”, he stressed.

On the same, however, Chairman of the Finance Committee in Parliament, Kweku Kwarteng asked critics of government's quest to seek a bailout from the IMF to be measured and support the move.

He said, the debate on whether or not the country's economy is robust for external financial assistance is needless and must not be encouraged.

“Why are we preoccupied with this? What kind of discussions do we want to have about the economy right now? I believe that our economy has been challenged but as we grow, we should learn and begin to have discussions that will make this 17th appearance, the last one. Why can't we put those fundamental issues taking us to the IMF on the table? Why turn the debate into a blame game? Let's correct things and focus on having helpful debates”.

Ghana returned to the IMF for support after months of struggle with the economy and a cost of living crisis, and is expecting $3 billion from the IMF.

—citinewsroom