Deputy Finance and Economic Planning Minister, Fiifi Kwetey, has cast serious doubts about the credibility of the Report sent by the ruling National Democratic Congress government to the World Bank, explaining how the previous Kufuor-led New Patriotic Party government utilized the $750 million Eurobond loan.
The former Propaganda Secretary of the NDC Friday gave the strongest indication that his government lied to the World Bank in accounting for the $750 million Eurobond, urging Ghanaians to disregard the Report prepared and signed by the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Kwabena Duffour.
While Dr Duffour�s Report had made a declaration to the World Bank that the $750m Eurobond loan was well spent by the NPP government, Fiifi Kwetey insists that was not the reality, casting doubts about the sincerity of his boss in dealing with the World Bank.
Paragraph 7 of the Report the NDC government send to the World Bank reads: ��the economic environment paved the way for Ghana to go onto the international market in October 2007 to raise $750 million as additional capital targeted for infrastructure development on the key area of energy...the proceeds were allocated primarily to support public investment in the energy sector according to the following distribution; US$286m for investment by the Volta River Authority, US$134m for investment by the Electricity Company of Ghana, US$3.54m for investment in the Bui dam, US$34m for government equity in the West Africa Gas Pipeline and US$90m for road infrastructure.�
In spite of this declaration to the World Bank, the ruling NDC, led by its former Propaganda Secretary, now turned Deputy Finance and Economic Planning Minister, wants Ghanaians to take their propaganda claims that the $750m loan was squandered by the previous NPP government.
Speaking in a number of radio interviews, the Deputy Finance and Economic Planning Minister said the NDC government could not be truthful on the matter in the Report it sent to the World Bank because it feared the nation would be a laughing-stock in the eyes of the world.
�When you are writing certain things to the World Bank and you realize that you had a government that absolutely was a disgrace and irresponsible, you don�t want to go and literally tell the World Bank that you had a whole government who borrowed almost 750 million dollars to buy prepaid meters...to pay workers of Ghana...and buy AGC shares,� Fiifi Kwetey gave a reason for the government�s decision to tell lies to the World Bank.
Meanwhile, the NPP�s Director of Communications, Nana Akomea, has expressed total shock at the NDC�s spirited and desperate attempt to lie to Ghanaians that the whereabouts of the US$750m was not known.
He finds it difficult to understand why the NDC government could paint a radiant picture to the World Bank on how the proceeds from the Eurobond loan was utilized, only to turn round, for the sake of political expediency, to lie to Ghanaians that the Kufuor administration misapplied the funds.
Speaking in a number of radio interviews, Nana Akomea described the NDC as a group that thrives on lies and propaganda, singling out particularly the Deputy Finance and Economic Planning and describing his as �a repository of lies.�
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