It Was Cabinet’s Decision to Use the $360M to Pay Arrears – Ampem Nyarko

Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Ampem Nyarko has strongly dismissed suggestions that the $360 million loan recently approved by Parliament was originally intended by the World Bank for contractor payments.

Ampem Nyarko directly addressed claims by Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, who had hinted that the use of the funds by President Mahama’s government to clear arrears was in line with the World Bank’s original terms.

“Oppong Nkrumah is trying to align President Mahama’s decision to use the $360 million World Bank facility to pay contractors and suggest that it was the original intention.

“That is not true,” the Deputy Minister said in an interview on Citi FM’s Citi Breakfast Show on Wednesday, July 2.

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He explained that the World Bank facility, under the Second Resilient Recovery Development Policy Financing, was approved as part of budgetary support for 2025 and not tied to any single directive from the lender.

“It is not to tie the hands of the government to utilise the proceeds for any specific item.

“It comes into the pools of revenue for the government, and it decides what to use the money for,” he clarified.

Ampem Nyarko emphasized that Cabinet collectively decided to use the entire amount to clear arrears owed to contractors—a choice the Finance Ministry duly communicated to Parliament.

“The government took a decision in Cabinet that the total amount should be used for the payment of arrears. That is what we communicated to Parliament,” he stressed.

Frankly, it’s refreshing to hear a clear distinction made between political commentary and actual Cabinet decisions.

As a citizen, I believe we should encourage transparency like this and hold leaders to their word—regardless of party lines.

That’s how we build trust.

Source: Liberalprint.com