Deputy Head of the JoyNews Political Desk and co-host of Joy FM Super Morning Show, Winston Amoah, has described former President Nana Akufo-Addo’s decision to retain Ken Ofori-Atta as Finance Minister for eight years as one of the most damaging choices of his administration.
Contributing to discussions on JoyNews’ 2025 Year in Review on Tuesday, December 30, Mr Amoah argued that the prolonged tenure of the former finance minister had negative consequences for the country’s economic management.
According to him, appointing and retaining an investment banker to oversee public finances for such an extended period was ill-advised.
“I have always insisted that the last person you want to put in charge is an investment banker. With all due respect to investment bankers, if they take your money and trade with it and make a loss, they pass that loss on to you,” he said.
Mr Amoah maintained that the former president should have heeded calls from within his own party for Mr Ofori-Atta’s removal, particularly in 2022, when internal dissent over the handling of the economy intensified.
“The last thing that should have happened was to have kept Ken Ofori-Atta for the eight years. It was a bad decision by Akufo-Addo. When his own party came up and said he should sack him in 2022, he should have done that,” he added.
Mr Amoah’s comments form part of broader reflections during the 2025 Year in Review programme, which examined key political decisions, economic policies, and governance challenges that shaped the outgoing year.
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