Ken Ofori-Atta
There was high expectation of yesterday’s Mid Year Review of the government’s 2023 fiscal policy among Ghanaians, especially among the business community.
Their anticipation was anchored on the saying, “Today bi Today” in most rural communities where some big events especially sports programmes have been planned. Whether the day was a great day as teachers who are asked to introduce chairpersons for programmes will prefix their remarks thus, “Today is a great day and a great day is today” or not we cannot tell but the Finance Minister captured the state of the economy.
The Minister gave hope to Ghanaians like a father will always do to his children in order not to give cause for gloom and sadness. Ghana is still at the crossroads, still struggling to put its acts together during the post International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme.
Although Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta thanked God for turning the corner, the Minority disagreed with him saying the economy is in deep trouble looking at the achievements and projections.
Our worry with the Minority is its posturing after the Minister had engaged the leadership of Parliament to lay before them the programmes of policies of the government.
We have no doubt in our minds that it will take time for the government to take us back to the achievements of 2017 to 2019 which the minister alluded to when the Minority immediately turned the floor of Parliament into a campaign arena to attack the government to score political point.
We are worried about the posture of the NDC over the last six years or so to rubbish the policies of the government as uninspiring even when those wearing wooden glasses see the light at the end of the tunnel. The state of the global economy now requires that we as a people unite to rebuild our economy instead of playing politics with the economic figures.
It is obvious that the state of the nation requires that we build consensus in the conduct of public affairs so that nobody sits on the fence with the attitude of “do it and let us see.”
Let the NDC be told that the record of their government just before they exited power in early 2017 is still fresh in the minds of the people, and that the alternative they have always propounded is scary.
If the NDC tells us they have the brains for the job, they should offer alternatives that are practical and not criticise the Akufo-Addo government for the sake of politics. The fact that the Finance Minister christened the 2023 budget “Nkabom Budget” should have inspired the patriotic instinct in the NDC Minority to join forces with the government to steer the ship of state to a safe berth.
We expect unity of purpose in the debate of the mid-year review to set the parameters for nation-building in this post IMF bailout period. Knowing the attitude of the NDC Minority, nobody will be surprised to see them attacking the government without any workable alternatives, and this is where the Majority Chief Whip must mobilise government MPs to be present during the debate to help the Finance Minister with ideas to navigate these difficult times.
The government has an agenda. That programme is the ambitious “Breaking the 8” so that the NPP can have a longer tenure to transform the economy.
The people will be convinced to return the NPP to power in 2024 if they put in place programmes to revive the economy before the 2024 elections.
The government has no choice but to salvage the economy and give meaning to President Akufo-Addo’s mantra that “ we do not know how to bring the dead back to life but we know how to bring back the economy” and work hard to give hope to all Ghanaians that our circumstances are far from gloom and doom.