President Akufo-Addo’s address on the economy fell below expectations —Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu

Ghanaian US-based economist and lecturer, Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu has described President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's speech on the state of the economy as below expectations. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Sunday, October 30, 2022, delivered his much-awaited address on the state of the economy but ended up "infuriating Ghanaians instead of calming them down". Reacting to Akufo-Addo's speech, Dr. Sa-ad Iddrisu said while Ghanaians were patiently waiting to hear the measures put in place to make their lives better, the president only came to blame anyone but himself for the current economic hardship in the country. “The President’s address fell short of the expectations of many Ghanaians who are currently facing hardships due to rising prices and meager to no increment in their salaries.” “Whereas many citizens were waiting patiently for the President to tell us the measures that the government is putting in place immediately to curb the hardships, instead he rather disappointed us and again pushed the blame on Covid-19 and Russia-Ukraine war.” He added that “It’s unfortunate the President hasn’t yet recognized that his government’s mismanagement, reckless borrowing, and corruption may be contributing factors to the current hardships Ghanaians are facing. Available data and analysis were done by both local and foreign Economists including the IMF, and all point to the fact that the country’s rising prices of goods and services can’t be blamed on Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war. Rather, domestic factors are the major drivers of the current rising inflation in Ghana," Dr. Sa-ad stated. Below is Sa-ad's reaction to Akufo-Addo's speech on the state of the economy: The President’s address fell short of the expectations of many Ghanaians who are currently facing hardships due to rising prices and meager to no increment in their salaries. Whereas many citizens were waiting patiently for the President to tell us the measures that the government is putting in place immediately to curb the hardships, instead he rather disappointed us and again pushed the blame on Covid-19 and Russia-Ukraine war. It’s unfortunate the President hasn’t yet recognized that his government’s mismanagement, reckless borrowing, and corruption may be contributing factors to the current hardships Ghanaians are facing. Available data and analysis were done by both local and foreign Economists including the IMF, all point to the fact that the country’s rising prices of goods and services can’t be blamed on Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war. Rather, domestic factors are the major drivers of the current rising inflation in Ghana. The President instead of offering solutions to our current hardships, is, unfortunately, proposing new taxes on the Ghanaian people. The President mentioned in his speech that “We have decided to review the reforms in the energy sector, capping of statutory funds, implementation of the exemptions Act and a new property rate regime. How do you introduce new property tax rates on the already suffering Ghanaians in these hard times? Why not cut on your luxury Presidential travels and Jet rentals, the 50 V8s Presidential convoys, the ballooning Presidential staffers at the Jubilee House, and the excess ministries and agencies? Again, many Ghanaians were expecting to hear an immediate solution from the President tonight that would lead to a 10 - 20% reduction in cooking oil price from the current 1000 ghc by tomorrow Monday morning, or at least something drastic that would drive down prices of goods and services in the coming days. Unfortunately, there was no solution of such offered by the President. Other leaders around the world have shown concerns about rising prices in their countries and have implemented immediate solutions to address them. For example, In January 2022, Malaysia announced it will set aside 680 million Malaysian ringgit ($162 million) to ensure price stabilization for essential goods. Hungary also placed a price stabilization on food items such as milk, sugar, flour, sunflower oil, and chicken in February 2022. Panama established food price stabilization in August 2022. In October 2022, Bahamas outlined the details of temporary price stabilization measures on 38 key staples, such as eggs, bread, and sanitary towels, with the aim of helping families survive rising prices. All of these are immediate solutions such countries are putting in place to reduce hardships faced by their citizens, whilst embarking on the needed fiscal and monetary policies to address the problems in the long run. Calling on the President to offer the Ghanaian people immediate solutions to address the current rising prices, review his new property tax statement in his speech and also abolish existing nuisance taxes, so as to cushion Ghanaians in these hard times. Any introduction of new taxes on the Ghanaian people at this very excruciating moment may “kill” many in hunger and destitute.