BANK OF GHANA BORROWING: MINORITY DEFENDS OVERSIGHT ROLES

The Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has argued that the country could have avoided significant financial losses and reduced its borrowing needs if the government and the Bank of Ghana had acted earlier on concerns repeatedly raised by the Minority.

Speaking during parliamentary proceedings, Afenyo-Markin said the Minority consistently objected to the high fees associated with the Bank of Ghana's Gold for Reserves policy, insisting that the arrangement was causing unnecessary losses to the state.

According to him, the Bank of Ghana initially reduced the applicable fee from 15 percent to 9 percent after sustained pressure from the Minority. He noted that the fee was later reviewed further to 5 percent, again following concerns raised by the Minority in Parliament.
The Minority Leader also pointed to the Bank of Ghana's recent announcement that it would no longer finance the Gold for Reserves policy, describing the decision as an acknowledgment of the concerns his side had raised. "My argument is that if they had listened to us earlier, they would not have incurred those losses and would have saved the public purse," Afenyo-Markin stated.

He argued that the reported GH¢9.6 billion committed to the policy represented state resources that could have been preserved, adding that such savings might have lessened the need for the government to seek additional loans.

During his submission, the Speaker of Parliament asked the Minority Leader to conclude his remarks, after which Afenyo-Markin wrapped up his contribution while maintaining that the Minority's oversight had helped prompt important policy adjustments.