COVID-19 inflows exceed US$3 billion IMF bailout – NDC woman wrongly claims

Ohemaa Borngreat, a member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communication team, has berated President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s administration over its misuse of funds it mobilized to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

She claimed in an interview with TV XYZ that the administration completely misappropriated over 20 billion (cedis) which is equivalent to one million five hundred ninety thousand four hundred fifty-seven dollars monies raised to combat the Covid-19 outbreak and is now seeking just 3 billion dollars from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by way of the financial bailout. which her claim is false.

She made these remarks while reacting to the government’s decision to include certain individuals in its domestic debt exchange programme.

“By God’s grace, Covid is not a blessing but it is a blessing in disguise because when Covid came Ghanaians had a lot of benefits from the Covid.

“So, if you’re a prudent government, couldn't you have invested the Covid money and we wouldn’t have even been here chasing the IMF for just 3 billion.
“Whereby you had over 21 billion from the Covid fund. What did you do with the money? The Ministry of Information paid over 1.51 billion old cedis to themselves as risk allowance. So, the government has no vision for us,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, has calmed the nerves of pensioner bondholders, insisting that the government will not shortchange their legitimate rights but will honour their coupon payments and maturing principals, like all government bondholders.

He told Parliament that the government remained committed to the well-being and dignity of the senior citizens and pensioners.

On the other hand, President Akufo-Addo has also stated that the government’s debt exchange programme (DEP) was fraught with several challenges after its announcement, but it has largely been accepted by the citizenry.

He made this known when the German Federal Minister of Finance, Christian Lindner, paid him a visit at the Jubilee House.

The government has also announced 85% subscription rate for the DDEP which faced stiff challenges from a range of bondholders.



AM/SARA