Mark Assibey-Yeboah, a former representative for New Juaben South, has firmly indicated that he will park the nation's economy at the International Monetary Fund in his capacity as finance minister (IMF).
The former Chairman of the Parliament's Finance Committee claimed that a Fund programme is a better way to manage the nation's economy in an interview with Citi TV on July 5.
He also emphasised that borrowing through the Fund rather than the free market was more sensible for the nation. He continued by saying that because loans taken out from the IMF bore no interest, doing so was more smart.
"I contend that when the IMF is in town, things get done properly. If you look back at the programme we ran from 2009 to 2012 under Atta Mills, it was great. The macro indexes between 2009 and 2012 were the greatest we had seen in a very long time. Everything went haywire in 2012 when the Fund abruptly left. Dr. Mark Assibey-Yeboah declared, "If I were Finance Minister, I would park the economy at the IMF.
"To all nations, the IMF is like the Bank of Ghana...
You rely on them for support. We take out loans every week. There will be an auction this Friday, and we plan to borrow around $1 billion. "We borrowed last week. We go to the Bank of Ghana's auction every Friday to borrow money.
At a 27 percent [interest rate], we borrow money. There will be no interest charged if you request $1 billion from the Fund; it will be zero percent. He said, "They will grant you a moratorium and allow us 25 years to repay.
Background
On July 1, President Akufo-Addo gave the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, the order to start official discussions with the Fund.
Since then, the decision has split the public. While some people applauded the move, others condemned the administration for not sticking to its original commitment to delay returning to the Fund.
An IMF team has also arrived in the nation to start the basic engagement procedures. Carlo Sdralevich, the nation's mission head, is in charge of the group.
"The IMF is ready to support Ghana to restore macroeconomic stability, ensure debt sustainability, promote inclusive and sustainable growth, and confront the effects of the war in Ukraine and the lingering epidemic," said Mr. Sdralevich in a statement.