The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Minority in Parliament through its leader Mr. Haruna Iddrisu has expressed their discontent with the 2022 State of Nation Address (SONA) presented by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on the floor of the August House on Wednesday, March 30, 2022.
According to him fuel prices and prices of foodstuffs and other services have increased significantly in recent months but the president failed to touch on it even though most Ghanaians are calling on the government to come up with innovative measures to provide some comfort.
For this reason, the NDC Minority says they were expecting the President to tell the nation measures are being employed to lessen the current hardship in the nation.
“We expected him to deliver the true state of the nation that reflects the hardship of the people. Regrettably, he himself does not have the confidence to talk about the economy,” the Minority Leader, revealed while seconding the Majority to adjourn the sitting.
However, President Akufo-Addo in addressing Parliament has blamed the Ukraine invasion by Russia for the worsening economic situation in Ghana.
“The economic devastation of COVID has, since the beginning of this year, been further aggravated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has worsened the economic outlook of the entire world.
“We, in Ghana, have not escaped this development, and the consequences are being felt in rising living costs at our markets and at fuel stations,” the President stated.
He continued “The terrible events in Ukraine have a direct impact on our lives here in Ghana. Mr. Speaker, thirty percent (30%) of our wheat flour and fertilizer imports come from Russia. Sixty percent (60%) of iron rods and other metal sheets are imported from Ukraine, and almost twenty percent (20%) of Ghana’s manganese is shipped to Ukraine.”