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An influential member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko has jabbed the opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC) that the increase in debt stock since the ruling NPP took office had been kept under 100%.
According to him, the NDC average was 255% every 4 years.
In a piece on his Facebook wall, Gabby said “Ghana’s debt stock now stands at GHS236 billion (including the cost of the banking crisis) – from GHS 122.2 billion at the end of 2016.
“That is a huge 93.1% increase. Yet, we are seeing the lowest rate of debt accumulation under any government since President Kufuor handed over to President Atta Mills”, he pointed out.
He argued that “The incontestable facts are that Ghana’s debt stock has been managed far better under the Akufo-Addo government than the previous 8 years under the NDC.”
For example, between January 2009 and January 2013, Ghana’s debt stock increased by 267%, from GHS9.7 billion to GHS35.6 billion, respectively.
Between January 2013 and January 2017, the increase was 243%, from GHS35.6 billion to GHS122.2 billion.
Ghana’s total public debt increased by US$300 million in March 2020 to US$43.4 billion, the latest March 2020 Bank of Ghana Summary of Economic and Financial Data has revealed.
This debt is more than half the total size of the country’s economy.
In cedi terms, the nation’s debt jumped from GHS228.4 billion in February 2020 to GHS236.1 billion in March 2020, about 59.3% of Gross Domestic Product.
But Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, Cassiel Ato Forson is calling on Ghanaians to vote out President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the New Patriotic Party because of the growing public sector debt under their watch.
Source:MyNewsGh.com/Stephen Zoure/2020
