The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr Ernest Addison, has dismissed calls by the National Democratic Congress, NDC and the Minority in Parliament for him to resign.
Dr Addison in an interview with ‘International Business Website, Central Banking’, said he is not stepping down, describing the protest by the NDC as “completely unnecessary.”
He said “the Minority in parliament have many avenues to channel their grievances and not through demonstrations.
Dr. Addison also rejected the claims by the Minority that he printed money to finance the lavish lifestyle of the ruling government.
According to him, the Bank of Ghana provided monetary financing during 2020 and 2022, to meet specific crises which he says is legal under the central bank law.
The Central Bank posted losses totalling 60.81 billion cedis for the 2022 financial year as against a profit of 1.23 billion cedis recorded in 2021.
The losses are the result of the government’s domestic debt restructuring activities and the depreciation of the cedi, among other effects.
Regarding the central bank’s 2022 losses, Dr. Addison told ‘Central Banking’ website that the impairment of the bank’s holdings of debt which led to the losses is a conditionality for the IMF programme, adding that nobody at the Bank of Ghana forgave any debt.
The Governor also clarified issues surrounding the construction of a new headquarters for the BOG, saying the BoG decided to start the new headquarters in 2019.
He said this was “when the bank was profitable and appropriated some of its profits for the new headquarters, adding that the construction is not a decision taken during a crisis.”
SOURCE: Citi/‘‘Central Banking’’