The blunt announcement this week from the Minister of Information that the President had given the Finance Minister permission to "commence official negotiations with the IMF" was the final indicator of the health of the economy.
We heard that Ghana was "heading to the IMF" in language that we all understand and dread.
The fact that we are "going to the IMF" for the 17th time doesn't make the situation any less terrible; similarly, the fact that any other number of nations have gone or are going to the IMF doesn't make it any less difficult.
The fact that we can properly point to the epidemic and Mr. Putin as major contributing factors does not make it any less unpleasant.
I have read the boasting, the "we told you so," and the invoking of hubris, which according to Greek tragedy is what the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the government are to think has brought us to our nemesis.
I am restricting myself to how to survive in times of growing costs of living because I lack the competence to elaborate on the ins and outs of the IMF's operations.
Crisis
In this country, we don't leave anything to the imagination when there is a crisis of any type in our daily lives. We have unique songs that we sing while sporting red armbands and attire.
When someone dies, you adjust the things you consume and the times you eat to make room for the visitors who come to share in your grief.
There are some dishes that are intended for happy times, and no one would anticipate serving them during a crisis.
We were trained to modify our habits and preferences to fit our circumstances and environment.
We might perhaps leave the V8s in the garage for a time seeing as how Landcruisers tend to irritate folks so much. Who knows, perhaps there won't be as much demand for MoMo from those whose job it is to mail everyone on their contact list and request "some cash". The V8s might need to be parked for a spell.
Maybe there would be a shift in how we hold funerals, marriages, and other social gatherings if we were in such grave financial problems.
Nothing that I've seen thus far suggests that pockets are being squeezed, at least not yet. Although there is greater animosity and abuse directed at a particular Mr. Akufo-Addo in public discourse, I have not witnessed anyone refuse to attend a funeral because of the difficult economic conditions.
There is nothing to indicate that we realise the difficult times in the world, and I can just about see why a young couple would want to begin their lives in debt rather than forego a lavish wedding ceremony.
There are no car-pooling programmes that I am aware of. Observe the agonisingly slow morning traffic as it snakes through all the main Accra entrances. Most of the single-occupant automobiles are coming from the same neighbourhood.
I am not aware of any neighbourhood where residents hire one individual to conduct the weekly grocery shopping at Malata Market for three or four houses in order to save money on transportation.
However, I have not heard of anyone refusing to eat fried plantain because it is now too pricey. I have seen furious videos regarding the quantity of the fried plantain being served.