E-Levy Failure Forces Jubilee House Crunch Meeting At Peduase

The Cabinet of the Akufo-Addo government reportedly held a crunch meeting during the week in a new grope for solutions to the gnawing problems that are threatening to collapse the economy.

According to a report gathered by Whatsup News, the meeting held at the Peduase Lodge in the Eastern Region was predominated by arguments that the obnoxious Electronic Levy (e-levy) was the only solution to Ghana’s imminent economic collapse.

Indeed, shortly before the said crunch meeting, President Akufo-Addo’s notorious cousin, Gabby Asare Otchere Darko, went live on social media to hint at it when he called for a national debate on whether the country should go for an IMF bailout or pass the highly unpopular e-levy.

In a tweet, Mr. Otchere-Darko who is also noted as the main controller of President Akufo Addo ads the de facto “Prime Minister”, wrote: “2022 began without the usual $3 billion injections of Eurobond cash. Govt’s post-COVID recovery GhanaCARES programme hinged partly on an E-levy which Parliament may not even OK. There should be a national debate: do we want IMF or E-Levy or both or none? Tough decisions confront Ghana.”

Meanwhile, the meeting at the Peduase Lodge was reportedly chaired by President Akufo-Addo with all MPs of the governing NPP, Ministers and other appointees of State under a requirement to attend.

The Akufo-Addo government has superintended over a virtual collapse of Ghana’s economy with corruption-fueled inexplicable borrowing by the regime trapping the country in a debt conundrum that will be difficult to get rid of.

Ghana’s public debt is around GHC 340 billion, with debt to GDP hovering over 80%-a situation that puts Ghana in the bracket of a “Highly-Indebted Country”.

That level of indebtedness has forced foreign investors and institutions to avoid putting money into the economy or lending any more money to the country respectively. This is because they can anticipate that the Akufo Addo-led administration would be unable to pay back.

The rampaging borrowing is courtesy of Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, who was motivated to borrow due to a corrupt arrangement in which his private company, Databank Financial Services is contracted as a so-called bond market expert.

Databank earns juicy commissions anytime Ghana floats Eurobonds or secures other debts.

Meanwhile, because the country imports virtually everything, the government’s inability to access loans means dollars have become scarce and therefore it is more expensive to import.

Consequently, the US dollar is now selling at cocaine-like prices, with the attendant effect that importers need more cedis to buy the dollar to be able to import goods driving inflation through the roofs.

As of Thursday, March 17, reports by TV3 indicated that the cedi had depreciated further against the dollar so that $1 was going for Ghc8.30.