Debt Exchange: Alan Kyerematen Calls On Akufo-Addo Government To Exclude Individual Bondholders From Programme

• A flagbearer aspirant of the NPP has called on the Akufo-Addo-led government to vary the current terms of the Domestic Debt Exchange programme
• Alan Kyerematen wants the government to exclude individual bondholders from the programme
• He says adding such a category of persons to the programme will have dire consequences for them and the economy as a whole

A former minister of trade and industry, Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen has called on the Akufo-Addo-led government to vary the terms of the Domestic Debt Exchange programme.

According to him, the current arrangement of the programme will have dire consequences for the Ghanaian economy if individual bondholders are not excluded.

Alan Kyeremateng Urges Government To Exclude Individual Bondholders From Domestic Debt Exchange Programme

The aspiring flagbearer of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in an appeal urged the government to as a matter of urgency exclude such a category of persons from the debt exchange programme.

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Mr Kyerematen in explaining further said the individual bondholders represent a critical part of the economy whose plights are likely to be compounded if the programme is allowed to stand.

“In my view, having a debate about including individual bondholders and those involved in this collective scheme is creating a platform for very serious negative discourse which could potentially create both domestic and international problems for us,” he said.

Alan Kyerematen: Aspiring NPP Flagbearer Urges Government To Focus On Finding Good Terms For Individual Bondholders

He also recommended to the government to rather focus on finding good terms for such holders.

“If we touch the investments from these venerable groups, we are also making them lose the appetize and the desire for saving and that is the most dangerous thing that could happen to a country,” he said.

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The Domestic Debt Exchange programme generated a huge public uproar after the government added individual bondholders to it. Weeks earlier, organized labour managed to get its pension funds excluded from it.

The government is racing against the January 31, 2023 deadline date for its Domestic Debt Exchange programme which will prove crucial towards restructuring Ghana’s debt before accessing the $3 billion IMF economic bailout.

Debt Exchange: Individual Bondholders Lament Uncertainties; Say They Cannot Survive If They Are Included

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that Ghana’s effort to quickly negotiate the Domestic Debt Exchange programme with bondholders in the country suffered another setback after vehement protestations.

One such individual bondholder who spoke on Accra-based Joy FM on Wednesday, January 11, 2023, said they will fight their inclusion in the debt exchange programme as it will deny them and their families a means of survival.

Source: YEN.com.gh