Ghana Risks An Uprising Like Sri Lanka: Nunoo-Mensah Raises Concerns Over Severe Economic Hardship

• An ex army chief thinks Ghana is heading on the path of an uprising over unrelenting economic hardship
• Brigadier-General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (rtd) wants the managers of the economy to hold the depreciation of the cedi and rising inflation urgently to prevent honest people from hitting the streets
• According to him, many people are turning to a life of crime because honest living has become impossible under the current economic dispensation

A retired army chief, Brigadier-General Joseph Nunoo-Mensah (rtd) has warned about a possible uprising in Ghana if harsh economic conditions persist.

The former Chief of Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces said honest workers in Ghana whose incomes are being dissipated by rising inflation, cedi depreciation and general high cost of living would soon rise up against the government like it happened in Sri Lanka recently.

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He has warned government to focus on delivering real projects to the youth of Ghana.

“You can't just say we are building factories but the is nothing there on the ground. Let’s be serious and invest in the youth of this country otherwise what happened in Sri Lanka might happen here,” Brigadier-General Nunoo-Mensah told Joy News during a discussion.

He said many Ghanaians are turning to a life to crime because honest living has become impossible under the difficult economic situation.

"If you are an honest person today you won’t survive. Nobody is honest. So I am saying let’s look inward, look at this country. Look at our youths, invests in their future because their numbers are increasing," he urged.

Sri Lanka Uprising That Overthrew the Government

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Violent protests in Sri Lanka last month saw demonstrators storming the president's official residence and setting fire to the prime minister's home in Colombo.

The protests forced the resignation of the president.

The country had been facing its worst economic crisis in modern history this year.

Citizens have been struggling with high inflation, high cost of power, fuel, medicines and other necessities.

Ghana's worsening economic conditions

Ghana is facing its toughest economic conditions since 1981, according to some analysts monitoring the economic situation in the country.

Inflation for July 2022 stands at over 31% the worst in close to two decades, but some experts think the price-levels are much higher than the official figures.'

But high public debt and the depreciation of the cedi to the US dollar and other important trading currency is worsening the economic situation for ordinary Ghanaians and threatening business.

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The country has blamed the Russian-Ukraine war and Covid-19 for the economic hardship and has turned to the IMF for a balance of payment support. Some analysts have, however, said a bail out programme will not save the country.

U.S. Economist Describes Ghana Cedi As Bank of Ghana Junk Currency

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh has reported in a previous story that US-based economist Professor Steve Hanke has given a grim assessment of Ghana's local currency, describing the cedi as a central bank "junk currency" as depreciation persists.

The popular economist said his calculations show that the the cedi has depreciated by approximately 34% against the US dollar since January 2020.

"In #Ghana, the economy is in the tank. By my calculations, the #cedi has depreciated by ~34% against the USD since Jan. 1, 2020. The cedi is a central bank junk currency. GHA must mothball its central bank and install a currency board," he tweeted over the weekend.

Source: YEN.com.gh