As DDEP deadline approaches, resistance and opposition remain

While members of the Pensioner Bondholders Forum continue picketing at the Finance Ministry, parliament has, as a matter of urgency, requested the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, to brief the House on details of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme being implemented by government.

Members of Parliament (MPs) are of the view that it is unacceptable for the House and Ghanaian public not to have been furnished with the programme’s full details, a situation that they say continues to fuel anxiety about the exercise.

Supporting the call, Minority Leader and Member of Parliament for Ajumako Enyan Essiam, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson said: “It is imperative for the minister responsible for finance to appear before us to give a policy brief as to what is actually going on”.

Even the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Bagbin, expressed worry over the fact that pensioners are picketing due to their disapproval of the programme.

Consequently, he directed the Business Committee to, as early as possible, get the finance minister to appear before the House.

The DDEP has been kicked-against by some affected groups, including individual bond holders and pensioners.

The Domestic Debt Exchange Programme is likely to weigh on the balance sheets of banks in Ghana and consequently reduce credit to the private sector, Fitch Solutions revealed in the January 2023 sub-Saharan Africa Market Update.

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has however reiterated the relevance of government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP); it is designed to help the country recover from its current economic difficulties, hence the need for all bondholders to rally behind it.

Government has announced an administrative window for bondholders to complete processes for tendering their bonds; it also said the window ends today at 4:00pm.

The Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) has been met with fierce opposition and widespread public resistance. Individual bondholders, civil society organisations, academics, finance experts among others have expressed disquiet about the whole programme.