TUC to declare stance on IMF bailout
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is to declare its stance on the government’s negotiation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout for the country’s ailing economy today.
Advertisement
The Secretary General of TUC, Mr Kofi Asamoah, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic, would not commit himself to the suggestion that judging from past policy statements issued by the union, it would not back the decision.
“Wait for our response. It might not be that as there are processes to go through before arriving at a decision,” he said.
The TUC, by its policy briefs and statements, has consistently challenged the country’s alignment with IMF.
It has blamed the harsh economic circumstances of the country on the unbridled market policies sponsored by IMF, which has also made corruption rife in the country.
Mr Kofi Asamoah, at this year’s May Day celebrations in Accra on the theme: “Ghana’s economy, a concern for all”, pointed out that the laissez-faire economic environment being practised in the country under the auspices of the IMF was not likely to deliver the desired development gains because the country was underdeveloped.
“A developmental state should not look on for this to go on. It should intervene strategically,” he told government officials and workers at the parade.
No departure
Meanwhile, a labour consultant has predicted challenging times for the government in the implementation of any policy initiatives that will result from government’s negotiations with IMF.
Other Trending Stories
The consultant, who did not want to be named, said organised labour unions in the country had constantly and consistently asked the government to wean itself off the support of institutions such as IMF because of the belief that the institution was capitalist and not concerned with the plight of the poor.
He said it was his estimation that the TUC would not back the government’s decision, judging from its past stance.
He also wondered whether the decision by the government was as a result of the economic forum held by the President and his economic advisers over the weekend, and the consultations with organised labour unions and other civil society organisations before the decision.
The consultant further pointed out the negotiations with IMF was not similar to the relationship between a client and a bank, but was an international policy issue with standard requirements for all countries subscribing to the expertise of the bank.
He said the impression being given that there would be negotiated conditionalities for Ghana was, therefore, erroneous as there were few discretionary allowances made by the bank-except for peculiar cultural demands.
He gave the example of Greece, where an IMF bailout had not come with any soft measures but austere conditions.