The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, according to a front page story we carried yesterday has made a clarion call to manufacturers, traders and transport operators to reduce their prices.
He made the appeal on the basis that at the height of the cedi’s recent depreciation, manufacturers and transport operators increased the prices of goods and services.
Therefore, he deemed it fair for a reduction now that the cedi is re-gaining much of its strength.
According to the President, he was only adding his voice to calls that had already been made by the Ghana Union of Trades, the Ghana Road Transport Coordinating Council (GRTCC) and ordinary Ghana.
“I believe this is not only a fair request, but also a just one, and I urge all of you to join me in this clarion call, so we can all have a more pleasant Christmas,” he said. He made the appeal on Sunday, December 18, 2022 at the Ga Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana’s centennial celebration in Accra.
Though many will argue that it was his administration that oversaw the rapid depreciation of the cedi and subsequent rise in goods and services, we still believe his call is in the right direction.
Over the past few days, the cedi is fast appreciating against the major world currencies, especially the US dollar. As a result of this development, prices of petroleum products keep dropping at the pumps. As a matter of fact, fuel prices have tumbled from GH¢22.00 to a little over GH¢15.00 currently.
The Chronicle is, therefore, happy that the various transport unions have reduced their lorry fares to reflect the new fuel prices. Since fuel is the driver of the economy, prices of all goods and services should also follow suit.
Because of high fuel prices, prices of food items especially hit the roofs, forcing the ministry of Agriculture to intervene by transporting food from the hinterlands to the urban centres and sold at relatively cheaper prices to consumers.
Now that the transport fares have gone down, The Chronicle expects our market women to also reduce the prices of these food items for every Ghanaian to enjoy the rapid appreciation of the cedi against the dollar.
The Chronicle, however, agrees that prices of imported items cannot come down overnight, since some of these items were imported at the peak of the Cedi depreciation and they must be sold by the importers to recover their investments.
The Chronicle, nevertheless, expects these importers to be honest and reduce their prices when they finish selling the old stock. We believe this is what the president was also referring to, hence our support for his call.
