The Minority Caucus in Parliament has intensified pressure on the government over delays in presenting the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 audited financial statements to Parliament, warning that failure to comply with statutory timelines could amount to a breach of the law.
The matter was raised on the floor of Parliament on Friday by Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, who serves as Ranking Member on Parliament’s Economy and Development Committee, during discussions on parliamentary business for the final week of May.
The controversy comes amid growing political debate between the governing National Democratic Congress and the opposition New Patriotic Party over the true state of the Central Bank’s finances and the scale of its reported losses.
The Minority has accused the government and the Majority Caucus of attempting to shape public perception of the Bank’s financial condition before Parliament formally receives and debates the official accounts.
Addressing the House, Mr Oppong Nkrumah questioned why the Bank of Ghana’s audited accounts had still not been scheduled for presentation despite the expiration of timelines stipulated under Section 58 of the Bank of Ghana Act, Act 612.
According to him, the law requires the Central Bank to complete its audited annual accounts within three months after the end of the financial year and submit them to the Finance Minister, who must then ensure they are gazetted, commented upon, and laid before Parliament.
“We are finished with April. That is the fourth month. Next week is the final week of May, and in the business statement for the week, I do not see it there,” he stated.
“I want to inquire from the Leader if it is something within their contemplation and caution that if we do not comply, we will be in breach of Section 58,” he added.
The debate follows earlier tensions over the Bank of Ghana’s reported GH¢15.6 billion operating loss. Earlier this month, the Majority Caucus defended the losses during a press briefing, arguing that the costs reflected deliberate economic stabilisation measures aimed at reducing inflation, stabilising the cedi, and rebuilding foreign reserves.
However, the Minority disputed the government’s interpretation of the figures, insisting that the Central Bank’s actual losses were significantly larger when other comprehensive income losses and gold transaction adjustments were factored in.
The disagreement has since become one of Parliament’s most contentious economic debates this year, with opposition MPs accusing the government of attempting to downplay the full extent of the Bank’s financial challenges.
Responding on the floor of Parliament, Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga acknowledged the concerns raised by Mr Oppong Nkrumah and assured the House that he would immediately engage both the Finance Minister and the Governor of the Bank of Ghana on the matter.
“The Bank of Ghana — thank you for drawing our attention. I will check the timelines, but this afternoon I will draw the attention of the Finance Minister and then the Governor of the Central Bank to make sure that they do not default in terms of the timelines,” Mr Ayariga stated.
