Former Finance Minister under the erstwhile Mahama-administration, Seth Terkper has said the government is not actually using the COVID-19 funds for what it must be using it for.
According to Mr Terkper, funds needed to fully fight the pandemic has been exceeded through the $ 1 billion International Monetary Fund loan, $219 million drawdowns from the Stabilisation Fund, the World Bank loan as well as the funds accrued from the National Covid-19 Trust Fund.
Despite having enough resources to finance the many adverse impacts associated with the pandemic, the government continues to borrow under the guise of using it for Covid-19.
His assertion follows the GHS 10 billion support requested by the Government of Ghana from the Central Bank to finance its budget deficit as a result of the pandemic.
In a media interaction on Friday, Seth Terkper called on the government to come out and tell citizens what they are actually using the COVIG-19 funds for.
“Government is using funds from Covid-19 to finance something and is not Covid-19, government has to come clear and tell Ghanaians what it is financing with Covid-19 funds. We are not against the idea of borrowing to finance debts, but the issue is that don’t use Covid-19 as a cover up or an excuse for it,” he said.
The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, following Section 28 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921), is scheduled to present the mid-year budget review on Thursday, July 23, 2020.
