…As Lies Against Him Deepen

If there is any minister in recent times who is suffering in the hands of saboteurs, then is the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr. Seth Terkper.

Before the President’s latest reshuffle, the minister came under severe attacks within the corridors of his own party with the single aim of getting him out of the Finance Ministry.

However, President John Dramani Mahama reposed stronger confidence in him by reaffirming him as the handler of the public purse.

Just after the President’s action, the saboteurs instead of recoiling into their shells have reactivated the falsehood, malicious and the hate agenda against the otherwise calm-headed Mr. Terkper.

The latest of such ill-motive moves against the Finance Minister is that he was nearly involved in fisticuffs at the Presidency in connection with the recent mid-year review budget he presented to Parliament.

The said report, which was allegedly confirmed by one Laryea Mohammed to the media, has turned out to be false.

At no point did Mr. Terkper want to fight at the Presidency and was stopped by the President.

The report had it that Mr. Terkper did not engage the Economic Management Team headed by no other person than the Vice President, Kwesi Amissah Arthur, before presenting the said budget to Parliament.

It has turned out that the Finance Minister indeed engaged the Economic management team and inputs were by the team and other relevant stakeholders before the budget was presented to Parliament.

Sources at the Presidency has it that there was no occasion that Mr. Terkper wanted to trade blows with Dr. Nii Moi Thompson over inputs into what was presented in the mid-year budget review.

In fact, it turned out that the Vice President was fully aware of what was in the mid-year budget review as it had been thoroughly discussed before the minister presented it to Parliament.

The Presidency sources say that there were murmurings after the media report suggested that the President had to step-in to prevent a fight between Mr. Terkper and Dr. Thompson.

The budget review indeed did not speak about the widening tax net as suggested in the media, in the attempt to bastardize Mr. Terkper.

The moves against Mr. Terkper started long ago with the likes of Mahama Ayariga, Alhaji Bature, Allotey Jacobs and recently Raymond Archer expressing their disapproving of the Mr. Terkper's management style and frank responses to questions on the economy.

It is widely suspected that persons who hitherto were getting freebies from the Finance Ministry are pushing the attackers to assault the otherwise hardworking minister, per pronouncements by the President.

The President claimed publicly that persons within the National Democratic Congress (NDC) were on his tail to fire his Finance Minister.

Mr. Terkper is credited as having blocked holes that hitherto contributed to the loss of public funds.

Not long ago, persons who were full-time workers at the Finance ministry were also serving as consultants to the same ministry, but Mr. Terkper has managed to sanitize the place.

He is reported to have turned down some of his colleague ministers who wanted to circumvent events at the ministry.

Certain party people have also complained at various quarters' that Mr. Terkper was refusing to dance to their tune with the explanation that he was in there serve Ghana and to make the President succeed.

Stay tuned for juicy updates.