Trumpeting your achievements does not fix my pocket – Joe Jackson hits back at Ken Ofori-Atta

Joe Jackson, the Director of Business Operations at Dalex Finance has proffered that Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta failed to address the concerns of the #FixTheCountry campaigners in his press conference on Sunday, May 9, 2021.

The Finance Minister held a presser on Sunday to respond to the economic issues raised by the young activists.

Ken Ofori-Atta while highlighting the achievement of the Akufo-Addo administration called on the youth to join forces with the government to build the country.

He also highlighted eight interventions being rolled out by the government to ease pressure on Ghanaians.

“First, I am working with the Minister for Water and Sanitation to immediately ensure potable water to areas with felt need, especially in the most urban areas.

“Second, I am working with the Ministers of Roads and Highways, Transport and Interior to address congestion along the major highways.

“Third, we are fast-tracking the implementation of the US$200 million Jobs and Skills Programme to enhance job creation significantly. This intervention is designed to facilitate new and expanded private sector businesses to employ a lot more people. This we believe is a more sustainable way to rebuild this economy instead of expanding Government employment schemes.

“Fourth, starting this month, we are rolling over 8 additional interventions under the GhanaCARES “Obataanpa” programme. These will be in health, agriculture, tourism, trade, digitization, science and technology, housing and financial services.

“Fifth, by the end of July, we will have a new Development Bank that will provide long-term wholesale financing to the private sector through commercial banks,” Ofori-Atta said.

But Joe Jackson believes that the achievements listed by the Finance Minister do not tackle the real issues facing Ghanaians.

He questioned the effectiveness of some of the initiatives in dealing with unemployment is questionable.

“Trumpeting your achievements does not fix my pocket and here when I talk about my pocket, I’m talking about those public sentiments that are being expressed, and the dissatisfaction in the level of unemployment with the public services, the dumsor, the roads, and the issues to do with education, security, health services, and housing which is making people unhappy and the perception of the increasing levels of corruption.

“So telling somebody who says there is corruption, telling him about 1D1F, telling him about Planting for Food and Jobs and the others and however deep-rooted these may be in truth does not solve his or her problem,” he lamented.