In its top story, the Guide says that speculations abound in official circles of the ruling NDC that Mr Kwame Pianim, an economic consultant is being considered to take over from Mr Kwame Peprah as the Finance Minister.

The paper says that Mr Pianim, however, laughed over it and said "do you think the government will appoint me as a Minister?" The Guide says that when it suggested that it was possible in the name of national reconciliation, Mr Pianim still rebuffed it saying that he is not qualified to be a Minister. He is said to have explained that as a Minister, he should qualify to be a Member of Parliament, which the Supreme Court by its ruling, has barred him from. According to Mr Pianim, those who are considering him as a Minister of Finance, must be reminded of the legal and constitutional implications involved in such a proposition. But the Guide says its sources on the issue affirm that following the Ashanti Goldfields Company (AGC)/government saga, vis-a-vis the role of Mr Peprah, as chairman of the board of directors of AGC, there has been what they describe as "bad blood" between the President and the Finance Minister. The sources say that this coupled with the poor state of the economy, has led to a situation where the government is scouting for a replacement.