Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, a pillar of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), claims that the government was forced to ask the IMF for a bailout (IMF).
He said that the government was left with little choice since the policies it presented, such as the E-Levy, which may have provided real solutions to the nation’s current debt difficulties, were opposed by the people or by a minority of lawmakers.
On Saturday, June 2, 2022, during an appearance on Joynews’ Newsfile show, Gabby stated that although he is not particularly in favor of the idea of an IMF bailout, he thinks it is the government’s final resort.
“Yes, there were challenges, yes government came with its policies to see how to address those challenges and those policies were frustrated by the very parliament that we have.
“I am not too optimistic about why we are in the IMF, it is unfortunate that we were forced there because the policies that were brought did not get the support that it required so it had actually no option,” he added.
Mr. Otchere-Darko claims that the administration decided to seek assistance from the IMF as a necessary step in order to, among other things, prevent any further strain on the nation’s reserves.
“..We are in a difficulty but if you are in government and even if we don’t decide to go to the IMF, but you are put in a situation where your avenues of raising revenue are being closed, whether through parliamentary action or public rejection, then you will have to tackle it,” he said.
Adding, “The IMF may not necessarily bring us money but it could stop a run on our reserves, stops a run on your bonds, and I think if we have that stability over the next 15 months, I believe that the country will see a turnaround.
The President recently instructed the Finance Minister to begin official discussions with the International Monetary Fund, which prompted Gabby’s remarks (IMF).
According to a statement made by the minister of information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, on Friday, July 1, 2022, the president had given the finance minister instructions to ask the IMF to endorse an economic plan that the government of Ghana had developed.
