Special topics
The
Member of Parliament for Yapei Kusawgu constituency, John Jinapor believes the
country is heading towards a debt crisis following the commencement of the
gold-for-oil policy.
Speaking
on Eyewitness News, with Host Umaru Sanda, Mr. Jinapor predicted that, “I’m
not a prophet of doom, but from all the documents I have read, we are heading
for a debt crisis out of this so-called gold for oil deal” he stated.
According
to the legislator, this move by government to tackle dwindling foreign currency
reserves coupled with the demand for dollars by oil importers is a lazy man’s
approach, because gold, first of all, needs to be expressed in its monetary
value.
“You
can’t just say take an ounce of gold and give me a barrel of oil, as it used to
be in the real barter that you are talking about. You must first of all, value
that gold in dollar terms, and that is the function of currency or money”
he added.
The
former Deputy Power Minister also accused government of deceiving the citizens
of getting cheaper oil.
“Where
is that cheaper oil? Let’s assume you don’t want your currency to depreciate,
that is not the same as buying cheaper oil. Cheaper oil means that oil is
GH¢100, and I’m getting it at GH¢90 or GH¢80, that is what we say is cheaper
oil. If you are doing this to manage your currency, if you are saying Ghana we
are so broke that our reserves are depleted, and so we don’t have enough
dollars to buy crude, so we are using gold as a backup so that we can buy crude,
it is a different matter. Be honest and sincere, don’t tell us that you are
going to get cheaper crude or cheaper finishing products, that is not the
situation,” the legislator fumed.
Background
The
Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, in 2022 announced that Ghana has concluded
talks for the operationalisation of the Gold for Oil policy.
The
Vice President in a Facebook post said the first oil products under the policy
will be delivered in January 2023.
“I
am happy to announce that the Government of Ghana has concluded the
arrangements for the operationalisation of the Gold for Oil policy.
“Consequently,
the first oil products under the policy will be delivered in January 2023. My
thanks to the Minister for Energy, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources,
Governor of the Bank of Ghana, the Chamber of Mines, PMMC and BOST for their
leadership in the operationalisation of the Government’s Gold for Oil Policy.”
Meanwhile,
Mr. Jinapor is calling on government to communicate the full details about the
batter trade to Ghanaians.
“Where
are the details? What’s the cost of the gold, and at what quantities of gold
did they [government] buy? At what price did they sell the gold? How much is
the oil producer selling crude to us?” he asked.