Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta, has warned Ghanaians to brace for a major shakeup of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Ghana, he said, is still in the quite before the potential storm.
He warned that the rate at which the virus has spread in the country over the last week should leave no one in doubt that drastic measures must be taken now.
“Our actions in the coming hours and days will determine how we weather the storm, how many Ghanaian lives we can save and how far we are willing to go, as leaders, to ease the social and economic impact of this devastating virus on the innocent people of our beloved country,” he stated.
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Mr. Ofori Atta issued the warning in a statement he delivered to Parliament on Monday 30th March 2020 on the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of Ghana.
Stopping the spread
He stated that measures that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has already implemented and the new ones being proposed are aimed to stay the spread.
“And in many cases to stay one step ahead of the pandemic and not to react once it is too late.”
“The President is asking this House to support his efforts to take decisive action today that will ease the impact of this pandemic tomorrow,” he said.
According to him, actions in the coming hours and days will determine how Ghana weathers the storm adding, “How many Ghanaian lives we can save and how far we are willing to go as leaders to ease the social and economic impact of this devastating virus on the innocent people of our beloved country.”
“We are being called upon as leaders to act, and to fight together on behalf of the people and for the people.”
“Let us like David be remembered for serving God’s purpose in our generation and there is no better time for all of us to get off the pew and to act,” he urged.
Collective responsibility
The Minister argued that Ghanaians have a collective responsibility to act now to stem what could easily become a jobs’ catastrophe as both supply and demand ends of businesses struggle.
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He said, “We may not know the full health and economic consequences of this pandemic.”
“We may not know when the world will get over it. We may not know when a vaccine may be found.”
“But, what we do know is that we can take steps to protect our people and their livelihoods within the constraints of our fiscal space.
“Together, and with the help of the Almighty, we shall beat this,” he added.
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By: Osumanu Al-Hassan/Frontpageghana.com/Ghana
