Gabby Otchere-Darko begs NDC to back Ofori-Atta’s ‘critical’ budget, If not…

The 2023 budget is a “crucial” one, Danquah Institute founder Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko has said.

The president’s cousin said the budget cannot “suffer a fate similar to the 2022 budget and its revenue measures”.

Mr Otchere-Darko warned that ongoing talks with the International Monetary Fund could suffer a jolt if the budget does not go through.

“It could completely derail negotiations with the Fund if not passed”.

“Critical to this”, he noted, “are its revenue generation measures”.

“We plead the NDC joins NPP in this for Ghana”.

Thursday’s 2022 budget is crucial. It can’t suffer a fate similar to the 2022 budget and its revenue measures. It could completely derail negotiations with the Fund if not passed. Critical to this are its revenue generation measures. We plead the NDC joins NPP in this for Ghana.

— Gabby Otchere-Darko (@GabbyDarko) November 23, 2022

Meanwhile, the 98 New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs who intended to boycott Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta’s budget, have made another U-turn.

The majority caucus has also resolved to support Mr Ofori-Atta in the passage of the 2023 budget.

The majority side came to this conclusion after an intervention by the leadership and Council of Elders of the NPP on Tuesday night.

Some 98 NPP MPs had insisted President Nana Akufo-Addo sack his cousin for messing up the economy or they would have nothing to do with him as far as government business on the floor of parliament is concerned.

However, after a crunch meeting with the party’s leadership and council of elders, the party released a statement dated 22 November 2022, jointly signed by Majority Chief Whip Annoh-Dompreh, and NPP General Secretary Justin Kodua Frimpong, saying: “It has been agreed by all to refocus and recline to the earlier position requested by President Akufo-Addo.”

The statement added that it was agreed that the 98 MPs “demand be stood down until the conclusion of the round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which would feed into the 2023 budget”.