The Minority Leader, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has been heavily criticised by the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, for asking for the resignation of the governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) and his deputies amid charges of financial mismanagement.
The Minority in Parliament is seeking the resignation of Dr Ernest Addison and his deputies, accusing the Bank of Ghana of serious financial mismanagement.
The Minority claims that Dr. Addison must resign for monitoring the GHC60 billion deficit recorded by the Central Bank for the fiscal year ending 2022.
Among other things, the Minority claims that the Bank of Ghana neglected to report its operations to Parliament.
In a statement, BoG ascribed the losses on the government’s internal debt restructuring efforts and the cedi’s depreciation.
Nevertheless, in response to the Minority’s demand, Suame MP Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu questioned the veracity of the claims as well as the political overtones of the issue. He stressed that the matter should not be reduced to a political battle between the NPP and the NDC, underlining the importance of a fair and educated debate.
He further stated that, contrary to Dr. Ato Forson’s statements, the Bank of Ghana is not constitutionally required to report its daily operations to Parliament. He explained that the legislation merely requires the Bank to disclose foreign exchange receipts to Parliament, which it has done regularly.
“We should not make everything about NPP and NDC. Ato Forson should have known better because he has held the position of deputy minister of finance before and knows the operations of the Bank of Ghana. So, if you politicise issues of the BoG, it is not good for the country,” Osei-Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said on Oman FM.
He added that “there is no law that mandates the BoG to report its daily activities to Parliament. The law only mandates the BoG to report foreign exchange receipts to Parliament and the BoG has always complied with this provision. The BoG does not report directly to Parliament.
“The constitution says that if you pass any law that is inconsistent with the constitution, that law is null and void. It’s either the Minority are over exaggerating issues or have not had time to examine the facts of the matter,” he said.
