Bondholders’ concerns: The government is undermining public trust, according to the UG Economist
Dr. Patrick Assuming, an economist at the University of Ghana, has said that the government is abusing the people’s confidence by disobeying its commitments. To prevent the societal confidence from fully eroding, he wants the government to uphold the promises it has made to the populace. His remarks come in response to the individual bondholders’…
Dr. Patrick Assuming, an economist at the University of Ghana, has said that the government is abusing the people’s confidence by disobeying its commitments.
To prevent the societal confidence from fully eroding, he wants the government to uphold the promises it has made to the populace.
His remarks come in response to the individual bondholders’ threats to picket the Finance Ministry today, Monday, July 11, in order to demand the payment of unpaid principal and coupons. They had accused the government of not adhering to the payment schedule outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Coalition of Individual Bondholders Groups (CIBG), which was a coalition of individual bondholder groups.
Even though the planned picketing has been put on hold following the Finance Ministry’s declaration at 11:30 PM Monday that the outstanding principle and coupon payments had been made, Dr. Assuming wants the administration to take another look at its methods for keeping its promises.
On Monday, July 10, during the Business Focus segment of TV3, he said to Paa Kwasi Asare, “The government really needs to have a [second thought] about its strategy.”
The administration is seriously undermining social capital and trust, both of which are necessary for carrying out the IMF programme, he continued.
“The government will need to speak with Ghanaians and make a promise, and people will anticipate that they will have to put up with this for a while before some relief arrives.
He went on to say that if you start out on this tone and the government breaks its commitments, issues will result.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Finance, as of June 19th, all outstanding principal and coupon arrears for specific bondholders have been paid.
In a statement released on Monday, July 10, the Ministry of Finance expressed gratitude to all bondholders for their ongoing support at this time of constrained liquidity: “The Ministry of Finance takes this opportunity to thank all bondholders for their continued assistance.”
The government is optimistic that, along with all stakeholders, we can transform the Republic, achieve inclusive economic development, and restore macroeconomic stability.
