‘World Bank Country Director is an NDC man’ – Sam George ‘mocks’ government

Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Sam Nartey George, has commented on a harsh verdict on Ghana’s economy by the World Bank representative, Pierre Laporte.

The lawmaker sarcastically labelled the World Bank official a member of the opposition National Democratic Congress, NDC, describing him further as a Jeremiah and naysayer who did not like the government.

Reacting to a story published on GhanaWeb on Laporte’s comment that the economy pre-COVID-19 was in a bad shape, Sam George added that it appeared that Laporte was working against the sitting president and in favour of ex-president John Dramani Mahama.

His post read: “This World Bank Country Director is an NDC man. He doesn’t like the government. He is a Jeremiah. He is a naysayer! He simply wants John Dramani Mahama back in power. He is working against Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. They are all the same.

“Have I left any of their excuses out?” he quizzed.

His comment is in reaction to pro-government defense that current economic hurdles were largely as a result of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and its attendant disruptions across the globe.

The NDC and other independent analysts have held that the economy pre-COVID was in a bad shape but that the pandemic only exacerbated an already bad situation.

What did Pierre Laporte say?

The World Bank rep while speaking at the 65th Independence Day economic lecture held on Monday, March 7, 2022, said the economy was in really bad shape.

“Is it a really serious situation? Well, the numbers speak for themselves. The situation is very serious”.

“At the World Bank, we’ve not hidden the fact when we’ve held discussions with government officials and even the Head of State that Ghana faces a very tough road ahead to restore macro sustainability,” he said.

On the impact of COVID-19 on the current crisis, he submitted thus: “Yes, COVID-19 has not helped but even before COVID-19, there were signs that the situation was getting a little bit challenging. So, the key thing is to be transparent with the people,” he advised.

“Yes, the figures speak for themselves but not everybody is as educated as we are. Not everyone understands what the numbers mean, so, it is important to talk about it like we are doing,” he noted.

“More important is for us to find solutions for the problem,” he added.

The lecture took place at the Economics Department of the University of Ghana, Legon, and was titled: ‘State of the nation’s economy and politics, 65 years after independence, the path to sustainable development and democratic consolidation,” with Prof Kwesi Botchwey, Ghana’s longest serving Finance Minister as the main speaker.