THE Member of Parliament (MP) for Obuasi West in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, Kwaku Kwarteng has accused the government of massaging the country Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the 2015 Budget.
According to him, almost everything in the management of the economy depends on GDP figures. The real GDP growth figure reflects the pace at which they are generating economic activity and creating jobs for the people.
Mr Kwarteng argued: “The amount of money printed by the Bank of Ghana depends on our GDP figures. Our public debt, revenue, arrears and many other important variables are stated as ratios of our GDP.
Therefore a wrong determination of GDP-related figures could have very serious consequences for the general management of the economy and our ability to improve the lives of our people”.
It is for this reason that he writes to draw the attention to the false real GDP growth figure reported in the 2015 Budget Statement that the Finance Minister presented to Parliament on Wed.
He noted: “In paragraph 40 and other parts of the budget statement, you state that the economy would expand in real terms by 6.900 per cent at the close of 2014.
From the figures you have provided, GDP (in purchasers’ value) only grew in real terms from GH¢32,514.02 million in 2013 to GH¢34,024.35 million in 2014. This represents 4.645 per cent growth, not the 6.900 per cent you have reported”.
This is serious misreporting that undermines the credibility of the entire budget statement and economic policy of the government, according to the New Patriotic Party MP.
Mr Kwarteng therefore asked the finance minister, Seth Terkper to correct the anomaly, saying “Please take immediate steps to correct this misrepresentation before businesses and other interested entities (both local and international) use this wrong figure for their purposes”.
African Eye News.com
