Ghanaian Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has denied claims that he presented false data on the state of the economy to Parliament and other stakeholders.
In a motion for a vote of censure against Ofori-Atta, the Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu accused the minister of deliberately and dishonestly misreporting economic data to Parliament and others such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
However, Ofori-Atta told an eight-member ad hoc committee of Parliament investigating the grounds against him on Friday (18 November) that: “It is untrue and simply untrue.”
“I have never misreported data to Parliament. It is completely not true. I have served the country with integrity and honesty,” the Finance Minister said.
I am competent
In his opening remarks, Ofori-Atta said he wanted to dispel any doubts about his competence and apologised to Ghanaians for the current economic woes.
“I acknowledge our economy is facing difficulties and the people of Ghana are enduring hardships,” he said. “As the person President Akufo-Addo has put in charge of this economy I feel the pain personally, professionally, and in my soul.”
He added: “I see and feel the terrible impact of rising prices of goods and services on the lives and livelihoods of ordinary Ghanaians.
“I feel the stress of running a business. But it is the strength and perseverance of the Ghanaian people that inspire me and my colleagues in government every morning, to press on.
“That is what gives me the strength to press on to find solutions and relief for Ghanaians to the myriad of problems that our country and the rest of the world are facing, especially, since March 2020.”
