Minority demands BoG appear before Parliament over new cedi notes

The Minority in Parliament wants the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to appear before the House to explain how the new cedi banknotes came about, including claims that some of the designs show the wrong people.

Speaking at a press conference on the 2027 Budget, the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Economy and Development Committee and MP for Ofoase-Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, said the central bank must account to Parliament for an exercise of this scale.

He said the parliamentary committees that oversee the Bank, had not been properly involved.

“Parliament, unfortunately, the committees of Parliament that exercise oversight on the Bank of Ghana, like our Committee on Economy and Development, have no idea what they are doing when it comes to the new currency,” he said

Mr Oppong Nkrumah asked for the technical justification for changing the currency and for the cost of the exercise.

“What are the technical reasons for which our currency is being changed?” he asked. “How much has this exercise cost us?”

He also asked how the Bank would respond to the misrepresentation of identities on some of the notes, and what it would cost to reprint them.

His comments follow concerns over the people shown on some of the notes unveiled on November 12 as part of the Heritage Series.

One of the concerns is the photograph used on the GH¢50 note, which is dedicated to Theodosia Okoh, the designer of Ghana’s national flag.

The Bank has said it will engage her family over the concerns and work to address the issue.

The Minority also wants the Bank to explain its design decisions and hand Parliament the relevant documents, including a copy of the due diligence report on the designs and the names of those who approved them.

“We want to serve notice, and notice is hereby served,” Mr Oppong Nkrumah said.