Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin says the Finance Minister chose 6pm to present the 2027 budget because he wants Ghanaians to be asleep when the presentation happens.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on November 11, the Effutu legislator questioned what the Finance Minister is running away from, which made him choose 6pm to present the budget.
“We find it very strange that the Finance Minister has chosen 6 PM as the only time for him to come because he wants Ghanaians to be sleeping. He wants Ghanaians to be sleeping because, Speaker, he wants to come here at 6 PM. If he’s very clear on his mind, what does he to fear?
But he has chosen to come here at night and the same tomorrow they are changing the currency; the same tomorrow they are doing two things,” Afenyo-Markin stated.
However, the Majority Leader, James Agalga explained that there will be a launch of new currency notes on November 12, an event the Finance Minister would headline, with other leaders of Parliament and state functionaries expected to attend.
“We are not intent on presenting a budget statement when the people of this country are asleep. That is not what we are intending to do.
Mr. Speaker ruled in this House that henceforth sitting shall commence at 2 PM. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow there is an important state function. We are launching new currency notes,” Agalga clarified.
“We all know that the Finance Minister plays a critical role so far as the finances of our country are concerned and therefore would be in attendance when the notes are being launched. In fact, I am confident that Mr. Speaker himself has been invited and we grace the occasion. Yes. As Majority Leader, I have been invited. So, I am sure my colleague himself has been invited,” the Majority Leader noted.
BACKGROUND
Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson is due to present the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to Parliament on Thursday, November 12, at 6pm.
Speaker Alban Bagbin announced on Tuesday, November 10, that he had approved a request from Forson to move the presentation from a regular daytime sitting to the evening. Bagbin said Forson gave compelling reasons for the evening slot, though he did not disclose the specific reasons on the floor.
The Majority Leader, James Agalga, had earlier announced the November 12 date to the House. The budget, christened “The New Economy”, will set out revenue targets, spending priorities and job-creation measures.
Under Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution, the Finance Minister, acting on behalf of the President, must lay before Parliament estimates of revenue and expenditure for the coming year. The Public Financial Management Act also requires the budget to be presented not later than November 15 each year.
What is in the 2027 Budget?
Forson has described the 2027 Budget as built around the government’s four-year New Economy programme.
Speaking to the National House of Chiefs in Kumasi ahead of the presentation, he said the New Economy is “the Government of Ghana’s four-year programme to transform the structure of the Ghanaian economy” and warned that persistent youth unemployment poses a severe threat to national stability unless the country transitions to a private sector-led, production-oriented economy.
The programme has been described as a US$10 billion plan, and the Minority has demanded a costed plan showing how much will come from the budget, private investors, public-private partnerships and borrowing.
A KPMG pre-budget survey cited by former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam found 71% of Ghanaians named jobs and youth employment as a national priority, and 54% cited the high cost of living.
Why Parliament will sit at 2pm
Speaker Bagbin on Tuesday, November 10, also directed that Parliament will begin plenary sittings at 2:00pm from Tuesday to Friday, with mornings reserved for committee work, including consideration of bills, public inquiries and stakeholder consultations.
The revised timetable is based on Parliament’s Standing Orders, specifically Orders 5 and 55. Regular sittings will last five hours, meaning proceedings are expected to end at 7:00pm when they begin at 2:00pm. The Speaker retains power to alter the timetable for special business, such as the 6pm budget sitting on Thursday.
The new currency notes launch
The clash cited by both leaders is the launch of the Bank of Ghana’s Heritage Series banknotes on Thursday, November 12, 2026, at the Bank Square, Accra.
President John Dramani Mahama is scheduled to lead the unveiling at 10:00 a.m., with organisers planning to finish in time for Forson to present the budget later that day.
The Heritage Series, under the theme “The Cedi, Our Future: Secure, Designed to Last,” covers GH¢1, GH¢2, GH¢5, GH¢10, GH¢20, GH¢50, GH¢100 and GH¢200, and marks the return of the GH¢2 note.
The Bank of Ghana has stressed the exercise is not a redenomination and will not change the value of the cedi. Existing banknotes will remain legal tender and circulate alongside the new series.
The notes are not expected to enter circulation until the first week of December, to allow banks to calibrate ATMs and cash machines and to allow public education. The Bank kept the November 12 launch date despite its clash with the budget presentation because foreign guests, including officials from the banknote printing firm, had already booked flights and accommodation before the budget date was fixed.
By Christian Yalley
