Mid-Year Budget Very Deceitful …Minority Exposes Half Truths And Lies

The Minority in Parliament has challenged claims of economic progress under the President John Mahama led-government, saying that while the cedi appears to have stabilized on paper, its real value has drastically weakened in the everyday lives of Ghanaians.

The Minority was responding to claims of economic growth made by Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, when he presented the Mid-Year Budget Review to Parliament on Thursday July 24, 2025.

Speaking to journalists in Accra, on Tuesday, July 29, 2025 the Minority pointed out that although the government boasts of a stable exchange rate, the real test of economic health lies in the purchasing power of the cedi, which has now significantly weakened over time.

“The true value of any currency does not lie in its rate of exchange but its purchasing power. What is the purchasing power of the cedi to the ordinary Ghanaian today at Malata market, Techiman market, Abofour market, or the streets of Chorkor, Tudu, Adum, and so on?”, the Minority said at a press conference jointly addressed by Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam immediate past Minister for Finance and Kojo Oppong Nkrumah the Ranking Member on Economy and Development Committee

 They backed this point with figures, saying, a bag of cement that sold for GH¢90 in January 2025 now costs GH¢130. A loaf of bread has gone up from GH¢18 to GH¢23, while a pack of bottled water now sells at GH¢36 instead of GH¢28. Other examples include Sure deodorant, which now goes for GH¢45 compared to GH¢35 in January, and Kenkey, which has jumped from GH¢3 or GH¢5 to GH¢5 and GH¢7 per ball depending on the location.

They criticized the Bank of Ghana’s method of propping up the cedi by injecting dollars into the market, a strategy they say is unsustainable and misleading.

According to the Minority, this practice, which the government initially denied, is now being confirmed by institutions like the IMF.

The Minority also called out the government’s obsession with taxes. They argued that the government inherited a relatively stable fiscal space and external support from the previous NPP administration but has failed to use it to relieve citizens. Instead, the government is celebrating its introduction of burdensome taxes.

As the Minority put it in their press statement: “What is even more worrying is that, government has the audacity to take credit for the introduction of these painful revenue measures and even tout them as achievements.”

In the name of fiscal consolidation, the Mahama administration has introduced or increased more than 10 taxes and levies this year alone, many of which directly affect households and small businesses.

Among the most painful hikes are the increase in the Growth and Sustainability Levy from 1% to 3%, the introduction of a 21.9% VAT on non-life insurance premiums, and the return of road tolls. Ghanaians are also dealing with higher utility bills, electricity and water tariffs have gone up by over 17%, alongside a 7% increase in the cost of locally manufactured plastic products. Fuel prices have also seen an upward adjustment, with diesel rising by 5% and petrol by 2%.

In total, the government has introduced or adjusted at least ten different tax policies within just seven months. These include extending the sunset clause of the Growth and Sustainability Levy from 2025 to 2028, increasing the Special Import Levy, and raising utility and fuel charges, all of which are placing additional financial strain on individuals and businesses across the country.

Electricity inflation alone, according to the Ghana Statistical Service, has risen by a staggering 139.3% year-on-year.

The Minority stated that fiscal consolidation should ideally involve cutting down on excessive government spending, improving debt management, and boosting revenue without hurting the public. Instead, they say the government has taken the easy way out, piling more taxes on already burdened citizens.

The Minority also drew attention to government plans to increase fees for a wide range of public services. These include transport and vehicle services (such as registration and licenses), education-related fees (including teacher licensure), healthcare (like NHIS renewal and diagnostic tests), business and trade permits, judicial services, immigration and passport fees, sanitation services, and more.

The Minority further revealed that the government has quietly abandoned its original fiscal strategy presented in the budget and has now cut back GH¢19 billion from spending, a recommendation the Minority claims it made earlier in the year.

Despite these drastic cuts and new taxes, the government still reported a GH¢3 billion revenue shortfall by midyear, even after sweeping GH¢11 billion in balances brought forward.

They warned that the result of this failed strategy will be higher inflation in the near future, making it difficult for the government to sustain its disinflation efforts.

To address the worsening economic situation, the Minority urged the government to: Stop dumping dollars into the market artificially and instead enforce currency rules strictly as well as Promote public-private partnerships (PPPs) to help maintain essential services despite expenditure cuts, and finally withdraw some of the new taxes to prevent further inflation and lessen the burden on the population.

They also noted that while they criticize many aspects of the current economic strategy, they commend the government for continuing the Gold Purchase Programme started in 2021 and maintaining a tight monetary policy since January 2023.

The statement noted further:

“If utility-paying Ghanaians were listening, they would ask if the Government is honest.  In the first half of the year, this Government and the Minister have increased electricity tariffs by a cumulative 17 percent. This same Minister, on 3rd March, pledged during his so-called Economic Dialogue, not to let the ordinary Ghanaian pay for the inefficiencies of ECG and the energy sector. What has changed? 

“If the Small-Scale Miners were listening, they would wonder what they had just heard.  In just three months, the Government has failed to fund the GoldBod it established. The Bank of Ghana has been paying upfront and incurring unnecessary costs because GoldBod has failed to raise the required resources for its operations and has also failed to pay a competitive price for the gold it purchases from small-scale miners. The result is that, last two weeks, small-scale miners expressed their frustration. They are highly displeased with the prices paid to them by the GoldBod, even when global gold prices are at a record high. They are facing hardships.

“If the spare parts dealers were listening, they would marvel at the Minister’s deception.  Just last two weeks, the spare parts dealers in Kumasi demanded action on the unfulfilled promise to reduce the duty at the Ports. This month, we witnessed a demonstration by residents on the Ofankor-Nsawam road as the Government has failed to fund the contractors to continue work on these national roads.

“If the nurses were listening, they would note how insensitive this government is. If everything is as good as the Minister wants us to believe, why did the government fail to meet the needs of the nurses? The Ghanaians who lost their family members and were affected by the nurses’ strike know better.

“If the 320 recruits who have been unjustly sent home from the Ghana Police Service heard this, they would realise that this narrative is not about the Ghana they live in. If the over 730 recruits wrongly denied employment in the Ghana Immigration Service were listening, they would treat the Minister’s presentation with scepticism.”