The Minority in Parliament has downplayed the significance of the government’s recent payment of bond coupons, insisting that it is not a novel achievement.

Addressing the media following President John Mahama’s first State of the Nation Address (SONA), Stephen Amoah, the Nhyiaeso MP, stated that the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) government never defaulted on coupon payments and consistently honoured its financial obligations.

According to Mr Amoah, the government’s fourth payment to domestic bondholders should not be presented as an extraordinary feat, as the previous NPP administration had made similar payments without defaulting.

“The NDC Government recently fulfilled the obligations of the Government of Ghana towards domestic bondholders through the fourth payment of coupons to them.

"Whilst this is commendable, we in the minority want to assure the people of Ghana that we will ensure investor confidence continues to be sustained in our economy as we promise to hold this Government to its obligations in the same way the previous NPP Government did after the debt restructuring exercise,” he stated.

Mr Amoah further highlighted that the payment of coupons on 18th February 2025 was merely a continuation of an existing commitment initiated by the NPP government.

He pointed out that since August 2023, the previous administration had consistently made all due payments, debunking any claims that the current government was making unprecedented strides.

“On the Domestic Bondholders, we wish to remind the people of Ghana that the payment of coupons to them on the 18th of February 2025, was not a novelty. The previous NPP Government did not default in coupon payments as it made all payments due to domestic bondholders since August 2023,” he emphasised.

Providing further details, Mr Amoah revealed that between August 2023 and December 2024, the NPP administration had already disbursed GH¢17.25 billion in Payment-In-Cash (PIC) and GH¢9.77 billion in Payment-In-Kind (PIK) to bondholders under the prescribed payment terms.

Additionally, individual bondholders who did not tender their bonds were also paid coupons amounting to GH¢515.17 million at various times between 2023 and 2024, in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the government and the Coalition of Individual Bondholders.

The Minority, therefore, urged the Mahama administration to uphold transparency and continuity in financial management to sustain investor confidence in the economy.