'Apologize for putting Ghanaians through hardship' - Ras Mubarak

National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Kumbungu, Ras Mubarak, has asked government to apologize to Ghanaians for the current economic challenges.

President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday admitted that the country was in difficult times but not in crisis.

He however indicated that his administration was working assiduously to alleviate the plight of Ghanaians.

Speaking on Citi TV’s Breakfast Daily on Tuesday, the Kumbungu legislator insisted that the country is in a crisis situation.

“On a daily basis you keep hearing the laying off of workers across the country and for me if anyone tells me this is not a crisis, I wonder what a crisis will look like. Now it is at a tipping point and you should take a cursory look at offices and stores just within the Adabraka enclave. Don’t go too far away. Speak to ordinary Ghanaians, real Ghanaians. The scripted things that Bawumia will talk about. The TUC has released a press statement and many industry players have complained about the challenges they are facing, and I find it very saddening..They should be apologizing to the people of Ghana for the deceit, for misleading us, for telling us that we can fix Ghana in eighteen months, for telling us that the money is here.”

Also speaking on the program, NPP MP for Assin South, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, blamed the current economic challenges on what he called gross mismanagement of the county’s resources by the previous administration.

“Let us appreciate the situation that current conditions of economies and states do not happen within just a year. Years of irresponsible governance, years of misappropriation of funds and situations, so let us not pretend at all that the state of Ghana today was as a result of decisions taken just yesterday.”

In the past few weeks, the price of fuel and the depreciation of the cedi have become major topic discussions, as some banks were selling a dollar for GHc4.67, while some forex bureaux were selling at as high as GHc5 to a dollar.

Fuel prices also went as high as GHc5 per litre, with observers attributing the rise to the weakening cedi.

Economy is in good hands; we’re steering it well – Bawumia

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, recently said Ghana’s economy was in good hands, and it is being steered in the right direction for growth.

He thus advised Ghanaians to ignore naysayers who believe the economy is on a downward trend instead.

“Be reassured that this economy is in good hands. We are not where we want to be, but we believe that we are on course. But as all good sailors know, rough and turbulent seas are no indication that you are not steering well,” he said.

‘US dollar getting stronger against cedi; but our economy is growing’ – Bawumia

The Vice President also allayed fears that Ghana’s economy could crumble as a result of the gradual depreciation of the cedi against the US dollar.

According to him, the US dollar was getting stronger, hence the cedi’s depreciation, which is even at a lower rate than the depreciation at the time of the NDC.

Some economists, members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and many Ghanaians, have criticized government for failing to fix the cedi’s fall, and also deal with its general impact on the larger economy.

But Dr. Bawumia largely blamed the cedi’s depreciation on the strength of the US dollar, saying other currencies like the pounds were also struggling against the US dollar.

He said the NDC lacks the moral authority to accuse the NPP government of delaying in fixing the “Tattered economy” they inherited from them.

By: Marian Ansah/citinewsroom.com/Ghana

Source: citifmonline.com