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If Data Bank was successful, Ken Ofori-Atta wouldn’t have needed gov’t job – KKD

Veteran broadcaster, Kwasi Kyei Darkwah, popularly known as KKD, is of the view Ken Ofori-Atta accepted the appointment of Finance Minister by President Akufo-Addo over the ill-performance of his financial institution, Data Bank.

He noted that should Data Bank have been well off, Ghana would never have recorded Mr Ofori-Atta as its Finance Minister under the administration of President Akufo-Addo.

Speaking in an interview on Power FM on Wednesday, July 26, he said: “When Ofori-Atta was operating Data Bank, should Data Bank have been faring well and excelling, he would not have needed a government position.”

According to KKD, ever since Mr Ofori-Atta became Finance Minister, Ghana’s debt stock has worsened. He alleges that the Finance Minister personally benefits from the loans taken on behalf of the country, hence his laid-back posture despite the wails of affected Ghanaians.

“But after he assumed a governmental position, now he is leading us on a loan taking spree and this is now killing us.

He was not worried since whenever he took a loan, so let’s say 100 million, his company will earn 9.8 million. So why won’t he continue taking loans,” he alleged.

Due to the current economic crisis facing Ghana, citizens called on the President to fire the Finance Minister. But the president failed to do so, arguing that Mr Ofori-Atta is competent for the job.

In 2018, the Minority in Parliament demanded the withdrawal of the appointment of Databank as advisors to the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Ghana in the issuance of public debt transactions.

The opposition MPs argued that the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is compromising himself by appointing Databank to replace Strategic African Securities in the issuance of government securities.

Ghana’s public debt stats

Data from the Bank of Ghana (BoG) reveals a significant rise in the country’s public debt stock from GH¢392.2 billion to GH¢569.3 billion within 13 months.

As of March 2022, Ghana’s total public debt stood at GH¢392.2billion, representing 6.43 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) but as of April 2023, the figure rose to GH¢569.3 billion, representing 7.11 of the country’s GDP.

According to the Central Bank’s July 2023 Summary of Economic and Financial Data, Ghana’s debt in the first quarter of 2023 rose from GH¢547.8 billion ($50.7 billion) in January and further increased to GH¢564.1 billion ($51.2 billion) and GH¢569.5 billion ($51.7 billion) in February and March respectively.

Per the report, the country’s external debt exceeds its domestic debt. As of April 2023, the external debt stock recorded was GH¢321.4 as against GH¢247.9 domestic debt.

The increase in debt was mainly attributed to the depreciation of the cedi during the period and, to some extent, an increase in domestic debt by ¢15.9 billion in the first four months of the year.

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