By Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The Minority in Parliament has disputed claims made by the Finance Minister in the mid-year budget review regarding Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves and current account performance.
On the issue of Ghana’s currency stability, the Minority raised concerns over ongoing dollar shortages, contrary to claims by the Finance Minister and the Governor of the Bank of Ghana that there are abundant dollars in the system.
“Despite the Minister’s optimistic claim that ‘cedi no apicki’, the ongoing dollar shortages and high levels of Bank of Ghana intervention are evidence that all is not well.
Perhaps the Finance Minister should know that ‘cedi no apicki, but Abochi get the dollar,’ as Mr Adongo once said,” the Minority reiterated.
Addressing members of the Parliamentary Press Corps (PPC) in Parliament today, the Minority caucus explained that the John Mahama-led government is attempting to take credit for gains inherited from the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo-led NPP administration.
They claimed that the reported US$11.12 billion in international reserves includes US$8.9 billion passed down from the NPP government in 2024.
“The Minister’s attempt to disassociate today’s gains from yesterday’s effort is both analytically flawed and institutionally damaging,” their press statement noted.
The group further questioned inconsistencies between the Finance Minister and President Mahama over gold export revenue figures.
According to them, the discrepancies suggest a lack of transparency in the operations of the Ghana Goldbod.
“This apparent contradiction calls for proper scrutiny of the work of the Goldbod,” the group argued.
Citing an International Monetary Fund (IMF) warning, the Minority called for a clear, rule-based foreign exchange intervention framework.
They have, however, reiterated their commitment to long-term solutions such as boosting local production and implementing reforms to address black market and import pressures on the cedi.
