THE Convention People’s Party (CPP) has reiterated its belief that the government’s prescriptions for tackling the economic crisis confronting the country will only lead to window-dressing of the structural problems without altering the underlying cause of underdevelopment and poverty.
“ The government’s uncritical acceptance of the IMF, the World Bank’s economic paradigms ignores the lessons of history because past and comparative experiences have proven that wherever these two institutions tread in the so-called Third World, they leave in their trail massive economic and social dislocations and misery,” it said.
The CPP was stating its position on the 100 days in office of the government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in a statement signed by the National Chairman, Dr Abubakr Al-Hassan, in Accra .
The statement said after 17 years of faithful implementation of the Structural Adjustment Programme, during which Ghana was touted as star pupil of the IMF and World Bank, she has been eventually declared bankrupt and coerced into opting for the HIPC initiative.
“ The IMF, World Bank and SAP are integral parts of the problems associated with our economic crisis, and cannot therefore, be the solution.” it said.
The statement also expressed the party’s dissatisfaction over the government’s silence on subsidies on agricultural inputs, despite its campaign promise to restore them.
“ Failure in the agricultural sector will impact negatively on the manufacturing sectors, since it is important for the state to play an active role in both sectors, which are the main lifelines of the economy and critical to national survival,” it said.
Commenting on the issue of social services, the statement expressed surprise at the evasive rhetoric regarding the Cash and Carry System, which the NPP had promised to abolish during its electioneering.
“We note with deep concern that hospital charges have recently gone up. We are particularly worried that the proposed health insurance scheme will inevitably end up bloating the profit margins of insurance companies instead of responding positively to the cost of health delivery for the masses of the Ghanaian people,” the statement added.
With regard to education, the statement urged the government to move beyond its present superficial commitment to uplift education and tackle the more fundamental issues related to the sector.
It praised the government for the transparency associated with its operations and hoped that this would be translated into prudent fiscal management.
“ Against the background of the promise of zero tolerance for corruption we urge the government to be transparent on the allegations of impropriety associated with oil imports involving some top NPP sympathisers,” the statement said.
The statement noted with happiness the stabilisation of the cedi in relation to other major currencies but expressed concern about the continued and relentless “ dollarisation” of the economy.
