Prof Kobby Mensah fires back at Minority over criticism of government’s economic management

Chief Executive of the Ghana Tourism Development Company, Prof Kobby Mensah, has strongly criticised the Minority in Parliament following their press conference on the state of the country’s economic management.

The Minority, led by former Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, on December 29 accused the ruling NDC government of lacking originality and competence, with particular focus on the Bank of Ghana’s Gold-for-Reserves programme.

Responding in a post on X, Prof Mensah, who is also a lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School, brushed aside the Minority’s claims, describing them as rhetoric without workable alternatives.

He challenged Mr Oppong Nkrumah to account for the Minority’s record while in government, questioning which of their policies delivered similar economic gains.

“Which of your ‘old’ ideas reduced the pound from 23 cedis to 14? The dollar from 16 cedis to 11? Or fuel from 20 cedis per litre to 10.37? Talk, Talk Party,” he wrote.

The Minority’s press conference centred on what it described as a $214 million state loss under the Gold-for-Reserves programme and included a call for a bipartisan parliamentary investigation into the matter.

Addressing the media, Mr Oppong Nkrumah argued that the government has failed to roll out fresh economic policies, accusing it instead of repackaging existing initiatives.

“The truth about this government is that they have not introduced any superior economic ideas. All they have been doing is rebranding, renaming old things and sometimes even hiding the details until we, the Minority, bring them to the public’s attention,” he said.

He also questioned the government’s long-term economic direction, asking what new strategies it intends to pursue once the IMF programme comes to an end in mid-2026.