GOV’T’s ECONOMIC MANAGEMENT IS “COSMETIC”- MINORITY LEADER

Hon. Kyei Mensah-Bonsu

The Minority Leader in parliament, Hon Osei-Kyei Mensah-Bonsu has described the single-digit inflation and the stabilization of the economy being touted by government as an efficient economic management, as ‘Cosmetic and artificial’.

Inflation in recent times has being on the decline, from 18.5% in 2008 to 8.56% in October this year which the government has described as unprecedented economic management. But According to the minority leader, the continues decline in inflation is due to the government’s cushioning and subvention of  fuel prices   which undermines  the use of the Automatic Price Adjustment System to  review fuel prices monthly.

He also cited the non payment of arrears owed contractors, and statutory funds such as District Assembly Common Fund, GETFund among other to the tune of 3.9 billion dollars as reasons for the single digit inflation.

Hon. Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, who was addressing members of the Ho Polytechnic Chapter of the Tertiary Education Students’ Confederacy (TESCON) of NPP on Sunday evening, noted that, the current inflation trend does not reflect the true economic indices on the ground as he highlighted the high cost of living and doing business as well as high interest rates charged by commercial banks in the country.

“If the decline in inflation is not artificial, why is it not reflecting in interest rates” he asked.

Hon. Mensah-Bonsu also noted that, government has missed out on its targets this year for the agricultural sector, he said aside the cocoa subsector, food production has declined and the fisheries sector has grew by 1.7% as against 5% target for the year.

Touching on employment, the minority leader noted that contrary to the deputy information minister’s assertion that government has created1.6 million jobs, only 125,000 have been created according to the 2012 budget. Adding that, for the first time, there is an association of unemployed graduates because of the untoward hardship the government has brought to Ghanaians with its cosmetic management of the economy.

He therefore called on TESCON members be disciples of the party and preach the good news of the NPP’s achievements to Ghanaians and also work extra hard so as to wrestle power from the NDC saying, “it’s not easy for a government in power to surrender easily”