The Centre for Democratic Movement (CDM) has criticised the 2025 Budget as a mixture of populist tax reliefs and fiscally irresponsible spending.

While commending the cancellation of the E-Levy and allowances for Assembly Members, the group noted that the budget “fails to present a coherent economic strategy” for stabilizing Ghana’s struggling economy.

A key concern was the GHC 2.7 billion earmarked for the Office of Government Machinery, compared to GHC 327 million under the previous regime.

“Such bloating in an era of high debt and inflation is fiscally irresponsible,” CDM argued, warning that overspending at the presidency threatens macroeconomic stability.

The report also slammed the administration for offering only a 10% wage increase for public sector workers, compared to the 30% negotiated under the previous government.

“This raises questions about the government’s priorities in a cost-of-living crisis,” the statement read.

Though institutions like Deloitte and Bloomberg have projected inflation could dip to 15% by year-end, CDM credited this to global trends and prior reforms.

“These improvements should not be misattributed to current leadership,” it stated.

The CDM called for greater policy clarity on major proposals such as the “24-hour economy” and “Big Push,” noting their “absence from financial policy statements” creates more confusion than confidence.