The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has yet again taken a swipe at the governing New Patriotic Party over the latter’s consistent attribution of the country’s current economic challenges to the Russia/Ukraine war and the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the NDC, the Akufo-Addo-led government’s reckless spending is the principal cause of Ghana’s economic predicament.
Addressing the press at the NDC headquarters in Accra on Wednesday, August 3, 2022, the party’s Communications Officer, Sammy Gyamfi insisted that Ghana’s economy showed signs of serious challenges prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The point has to be made here, ladies and gentlemen, that general hardships per se are not a new phenomenon in our country. However, the current economic hardships Ghanaians are experiencing today are unprecedented in their scale, and unbearable in their impact.”
“Neither COVID-19 nor the Russia-Ukraine war is to be blamed for our economic troubles. These global factors are not the major factors that have plunged us into the economic mess we have on our hands. For emphasis, neither the COVID-19 pandemic nor the five (5) months old Russia-Ukraine war is to blame for the economic malaise we have on our hands,” Mr. Gyamfi argued.
He further added that the economy will be robust if the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta is relieved of his position.
According to Sammy Gyamfi, the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, must also step down as head of the economic management team.
“The earlier President Akufo-Addo sacks his underperforming cousin, Honorable Ken Ofori-Atta, the better for the economy. Also, our comical Vice President should be relieved of his leadership duties at the economic management team.”
Aside from the above, the NDC Communications Officer further gave four other recommendations he believes will help the economy rebound.
They are:
- The immediate repeal of the obnoxious and counterproductive E-levy Act of 1.5% on momo and other electronic transactions.
- The immediate repeal of the punitive COVID-19 levy of 1% on the VAT Flat Rate and the National Health Insurance Levy
- The immediate scrapping of crippling fuel taxes such as the Special Petroleum Tax that has outlived its usefulness, the needless Sanitation Levy (“BORLA” tax ), and the new Energy Sector Levy of 20 pesewas per liter of diesel and Petrol and 18 pesewas per kilogram of LPG.
- The suspension of the 9 pesewas BOST margin and the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy of 16 pesewas and 14 pesewas per liter of petrol and diesel respectively, both of which are not being applied for their intended purposes.
