Founder and Leader of the All People’s Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga, has blamed the pace of the country’s development on the monetisation of politics in the country.

The monetisation of politics in Ghana has always been an issue for discussion, especially because after general elections members of the winning party who find themselves in government, have to find a way of reimbursing their benefactors.

While some have blamed the phenomenon on the demands by the electorates during elections, others think political parties should adopt different strategies to generate funds.

Speaking in an interview on Prime Morning, Wednesday, Mr. Ayariga noted that leaders of the country must prioritise investing into the economy rather than pursuing their personal agenda.

“I think we spend more money campaigning to be president than investing in changing the economy of Ghana. There is so much wastage and that is why I say that we need to get practical and pragmatic leaders that can transform this country; not political platform leaders.”

“What are the basic necessities of life; food, health, education, infrastructure…these are the basic necessities of life we need to take care of. Have we been able to overcome these problems after 65 years? Look at our roads, very bad. Even mining companies in this country, go and see how they have destroyed our roads,” he said.

Ghana is bankrupt

Hassan Ayariga stated that Ghana is currently bankrupt due to the mismanagement of the economy.

He is of the view that the downgrade of the economy and its attendant debt crisis must be an issue of interest to policy makers.

According to him, he has done better for himself than Ghana's leaders have achieved for the country after 65 years of independence.

“I am not even 50 years old but I have achieved better than Ghana has. We borrow to the extent that where we are today we cannot borrow [again]. Ghana has been downgraded to C which means we cannot pay debts when we borrow.”

“Ghana is not broke; Ghana is bankrupt. We’ve become so useless to the extent that nobody is willing to lend us money. Can you imagine that we’ve mortgaged everything that we have for the next generation for borrowing and you think we’ve done well in 65 years?” he queried.

Harsher times for Ghana

The World Bank has projected harsher times for Ghana’s economy.

This comes as the exchange rate continues to rise amidst inflation and increasing cost of living coupled with a rise in prices of petroleum products.

Many Ghanaians have complained about the effect of the situation on their standard of living.

Government is already having a tough time rallying support for the controversial E-Levy, insisting it may not be able to settle some statutory obligations without the tax.

But the World Bank Country Director, Pierre Laporte does not see any end in sight just yet.

“The situation is very difficult right now. Ghana faces a very tough road ahead to restore macro-sustainability,” he said.

According to him, the source of the country’s woes may be more than just stifled revenue generation.