The Ghana Individual Bondholders Forum has reiterated its objection to the Domestic Debt Exchange scheme, urging the government to make fiscal reforms.
The group's convener believes that the only way out of Ghana's current problem is for the government to implement reasonable debt-reduction plans.
Senyo Hosi suggests that any attempt to implement a debt exchange scheme rather than assuring massive expenditure cutbacks will result in a far worse vicious debt cycle in the future.
"The Finance Minister must take the hard step and start clearing the mess in our governance system if it entails looking at our constitution. These are the issues that the Finance Minister will face if he does not improve his monitoring and budgetary controls. He will resolve this debt transaction, and then we will return and embark into a larger debt swap with Ghana."
"If this debt operation is completed, people will embark on a shopping binge in 2023. People will embark on another spending frenzy in 2024, and we will have to read a very sad Auditor General report in 2024 and 2025," he told Selorm Adonoo.
After multiple postponements, the domestic exchange deadline finally ends today, Tuesday, January 31, 2023.
Following discussions with the government's technical committee formed to resolve issues surrounding the DDE, individual bondholders added that, with the set target of 80% of eligible bonds, individual bondholders are not a critical success factor to the program's viability, but their inclusion has incalculable consequences.
It so suggested, among other things, fiscal modifications, including the privatization of 17 State-owned firms that were loss-making, bankrupt, or in jeopardy.
"I don't think this is the legacy the Finance Minister and the NPP wish to leave. Our issue is that we do not manage our operations well. I feel sorry for the Finance Minister, which is why he is pursuing the simplest path of debt exchange, but this will not fix the situation. In our budgetary management, we must address carelessness, corruption, and irresponsibility. That is the way to go. We'll come back to this if we don't do it. The underlying issue is that it is not being addressed."