By Alex Ababio
The Minority in Parliament has introduced a Private Members’ motion to seek resolution on the Government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP)”
The motion was filed on Friday and will be referred to the Business Committee by the Speaker of Parliament to schedule a date for consideration by the House.
The Minority is requesting that the Minister of Finance lays the full government debt restructuring proposal before the House for discussion. The government’s debt restructuring program aims to reduce the country’s debt to more sustainable levels, but the Minority has rejected the government’s debt exchange programme.
The motion is being sponsored by five individuals of the caucus, including the Minority Leader and four MPs. They are seeking clarity and some timelines to help hold the government accountable and ensure that pensioners are not left in the dark.
Last Thursday, the Finance Minister assured pensioner bondholders that the government will honour their coupon payments and maturing principals, like all government bonds. However, the Minority remains unsatisfied and has filed the motion.
The Majority side of the House has suggested that the Minority could file a motion to compel the Finance Minister to lay the document before the House if they remain unsatisfied. The deputy majority leader, Alexander Afenyo Markin, last Thursday urged the Minority to resort to other means, including the filing of a motion.
The motion was filed after the presentation, which was made barely 24 hours before. Per the practice of the House, the Speaker, Alban Bagbin, will refer the motion to the Business Committee to schedule a date for it to appear on the Order Paper for consideration by the House.