The president of the Ghana Leadership Union (GLU), Dr. Kwaku A. Danso, has called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to “suspend and refuse to approve a bail-out loan for Ghana”.
According to the leadership of GLU, any nation that after 65 years of independence increases its debt burden by more than 100% to about US$50 billion in just five years while the government’s Ministers of Finance and other executives refuses to pay taxes is not “serious and genuine”.
GLU in an open letter to the IMF after the Ghana government indicated its intention to seek Balance of Payment and policy credibility support from the IMF said,
“There is every reason to believe that a small nation that after 65 years of Independence increases its debt burden by more than 100% to about $50 billion in just five years while the government Ministers of Finance and other executives, as part of the rich and affluent, buy and build lofty real estate overnight and refuse to assess and pay taxes, is not serious and genuine. In the meantime, these executives have and see no conflict-of-interest laws, and buy the most expensive SUVs in the world for public use”
GLU who reminded the IMF that its conditionalities have been felt before in the 1980s after the economy had been ruined by a military Government, asked “can anybody at the IMF and World Bank account for the use of $2.1 to $2.3 billion loan for roads and highways approved and given to Ghana in 1989? No!”
Again, can anybody at the World Bank account for the use of some $2.1 billion for Water works approved and given to the Ghana Government in 2004/2005 time? Is Ghana still not rationing water, ordinary water, even in the most affluent areas of the capital city?” he further asked.
According to the leadership of GLU, the loans given to Ghana are totally not accounted for by a government with no transparency but military style riot control system.
GLU reminded the IMF that Ghana charges 15-55% duties plus 12.5% VAT and another 7-9% of other taxes on imported vehicles and goods, in addition to about 19.5% on grocery items in stores. “If any country cannot manage its affairs with such taxation, how then do you justify giving them more loans to drown the nation to bankruptcy while the officials escape free?”, the leadership queried.
How then do the executives or members of the body that constitutes the IMF or World Bank hold the poor people of Ghana responsible for these loans? Is it ethical and moral? No!” it further remarked.
We hereby ask you to not approve any loans for Ghana. Doing so is equivalent to deliberately causing excessive burdens for future generations who have to pay and live in a nation with the highest interest rates, inflation rates of more than 28%, interest rates of 20-30% and unemployment rate of more than 50% (not published by Government due to shame).
If there is any goodwill advice you can give the applicants for IMF bailout it should be for Ghana Government executives – elected and appointed- to stop spending lavishly on themselves, learn to control spending and cut costs, learn to account for and monitor public theft, and lastly let commercial and residential real estate owners pay their fair share as done in other nations!
On Friday July 1, 2022, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, authorized Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta to commence formal engagements with the IMF, inviting the Fund to support an economic program put together by the government of Ghana.
A statement issued by the Ministry of Information said this follows a telephone conversation between the President and the IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, conveying Ghana’s decision to engage with the Fund.
About the Ghana Leadership Union (GLU)
GLU consists of mostly mature professional and academics scattered around the world. We hope you consider this plea and think of the people of Ghana.
Source: Kofi Ahovi || BusinessWeekGhana