The claim of the minority on the stock of the debt is false – Government

General News of Monday, June 10, 2019

Source: Graphic.com.gh

2019-06-10

The government described as false statements by the minority in Parliament that the Akufo-Addo government had borrowed 80 billion GH ¢ in two years.

In a statement signed and released by the Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the government said it was surprised to see why the National Democratic Congress (NDC) had moved away from its position Previously rejecting calls for a loan account, and added that the scandalous claims of the minority were part of the NDC's regular attempts to frighten Ghanaians with lies.

"President Mahama, in his time, was the one who urged the opposition not to ask for an account on loans, because it implied that his deputies were sleeping in Parliament when they approved specific loans. . What has changed, and that is why the NDC, under his direction, now demands accountability? He asked.

The statement explained that a change in the nominal debt stock did not mean that the government had taken out new loans.

"It is also amazing to hear people who understand national accounting suggest that a change in the stock of nominal debt means that President Akufo-Addo has contracted new loans of $ 80 billion. GH ¢.

"As always, the people who make the claims know that the first addition to our stock of debt is the current disbursements of the loans contracted under their regime. Ongoing loan disbursements for the East University and the Tema Mpakadan Railway, to name a few, all contribute to the GHG 80 billion change in our debt stock nominal.

"How can anyone know that and claim that the government of Akufo-Addo has added 80 billion GH ¢ to our stock of debt?", He is questioned.

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He explained that the government had set a ceiling of no more than $ 500 million in new project loans in 2017 and 2018 under the IMF program and had complied with it.

In 2019, he also set a ceiling of no more than $ 750 million in loans for new projects and again intends to respect it, he said.

While advising Ghanaians to reject the NDC's "usual alarmist propaganda" on the economy, the government has argued that evidence of an improvement in the debt situation lies in the fact that even the Financial sector bailout, the debt-to-GDP ratio, which measures sustainability, remained at 56%, thus canceling the NDC's claims to an increase in debt.

The government warned the minority "to give up making false statements about the Ghanaian economy".