MP backs gov’t’s excessive borrowing – Avedzi

Chairman of Parliament’s Finance Committee, James Klutse Avedzi, says government will continue to borrow so far as Ghanaians continue to make demands from the administration.

In an interview with Citi News, the Ketu North MP said it is insincere for the citizenry to pressurize government for developmental projects, and at the same time criticize government’s borrowing.

Government has come under severe criticism over the country’s debt to GDP ratio which currently stands at the dreaded 70 percent threshold with many expressing fears the figure could send the country back to the status of a highly indebted poor country, HIPC.

But the Bank of Ghana has insisted that although the country’s debt stock has reached an alarming rate of GHC94.5 billion, more than 70% of GDP, it still does not mean Ghana is now HIPC.

Speaking to Citi News on government’s borrowing spree, the Chairman of Parliament’s Finance Committee, James Klutse Avedzi, said Ghanaians may have to stop making excessive demands on government if borrowing is to cease or minimize.

“If government is borrowing to fix the problem for this country and we are complaining that government is borrowing too much what do we expect the government to do? If he continues to borrow we will blame government that the borrowing is too much. For this year 2015, the Ghana Revenue Authority has estimated to collect Ghc25 billion and with other sources of revenue like oil, cocoa, timber and the rest, the total came to Ghc32 billion. So it means that even the Ghc32 billion is not enough to meet all these even with the exception of development project”.

“So if we don’t want government to borrow then let’s give more money to government or let’s not demand more from government so that the little that we are giving to government through our taxes and other natural resources, government will use that money alone for running the economy; so that we don’t blame government if a road is not fixed, we don’t blame government if materials are not provided at the hospital to take care of patients; we don’t blame government if materials for teaching and learning are not provided for schools”.

In a related development, Finance Minister Seth Terkper has reiterated his belief that the Ghanaian economy’s medium term prospects are very bright despite the current challenges.

Delivering a lecture at the University of Ghana on the prospects of the economy, the Minister based his prediction mainly on an expanding services sector and improvements in oil and Gas infrastructure in the country.

This is contrary to the groom picture painted by the Institute of Statistical social and economic research (ISSER) in its 2014 State of the Economy report.

Mr. Tekper also said government’s plan to be a net exporter of power is on course and would be realized from next year after the current power crisis is resolved by the end of the year.