Address Cedi Depreciation, Leave Debates – Ghana MP Tells Vice President

Confidence UbaniJuly 17, 20241 Mins read265

John Jinapor, the Member of Parliament for Yapei Kusawgu, has called on Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to prioritise stabilising the Ghanaian Cedi over engaging in pre-election debates. Jinapor’s remarks followed a recent surge in fuel prices, which he attributed to the ineffective implementation of the gold-for-oil policy.

He accused the government of causing financial losses and failing to stabilise the currency despite significant investments by the Bank of Ghana.

In his words: “The managers of the economy have to sit up. And clearly, the Bank of Ghana is losing it. While the Bank of Ghana is spending millions of Cedis and dollars on the gold-for-oil programme, the currency is not stabilising. The Cedi is depreciating, fuel prices are going up, cost of living is going up, and everybody is suffering. But worst of all, wages and salaries are stagnating. Wages and salaries are not going up. The managers of the economy have lost it.

“And I think that Dr Bawumia should spend some time concentrating on managing the economy instead of calling for a debate. He should stop the unnecessary call for a debate, do his work as the head of the economic management team and ensure that we deal with the ever-rising cost of fuel,” he advised.

Recent Bloomberg data scored the Cedi as the fourth worst-performing currency globally, having depreciated by 20% against the US Dollar since the year’s start. Increased demand for dollars to import petroleum products and pharmaceuticals has reportedly worsened this decline.

Ghana’s Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, has promised that Cedi will stabilise against the US Dollar in the medium term. However, concerns persist about the immediate economic impact on Ghanaian households.

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