A section of legislators in Ghana’s parliament are demanding the immediate sacking of the finance minister, and his deputy, over the state of the economy and the depreciating cedi – the local currency. (BBC)
At least 80 lawmakers drawn from the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) held a press conference Tuesday evening to call for the removal of the two from office – over alleged mismanagement of the economy, excessive government spending, illegal payment of oil revenues into offshore accounts, and conflict of interest.
Neither the president nor Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, have made official comments or issued a response to the wide-ranging allegations.
MPs have threatened to boycott further parliament activity such as the forthcoming 2023 budget hearing – this comes after opposition MPs filed an impeachment notice in the house.
The embattled minister, who is currently negotiating a $3bn (£2.6mn) bailout fund from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has come under scrutiny since December 2021, following the introduction of an unpopular 1.5% tax on mobile money transactions.
The Ghana cedi has also fallen significantly against the US Dollar causing rising food prices and worsening the cost-of-living crisis, as inflation approaches the 38% mark.
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