Mahama Wonders: Why Would You Wish Cedi Falls GH�73;10 To $1?

President John Mahama has said people who �deliberately� predicted that the Cedi would fall by GH�73;10 to $1, not only caused fear and panic in the forex market, but also did not do their country any good. ��When you have politicians talking down the Cedi deliberately and saying that by the end of the year the Cedi will go to 10 point 1, why would you wish that? Why would you wish that for your own country? �And so it frightens people and everybody�s little Cedis they have under the bed, they go and take it and go and buy Dollars and put it under the bed. Eventually the bubble will burst, and when it bursts you�ll lose money, and that is exactly what has happened�, the President told Ghanaians in the UK recently, during an official visit. In his view, negative predictions and forecasting about the currency�s strength, conspired with the effects of speculations, to wither away the Cedi�s value against the Dollar and other major currencies of international trade. �Speculations on the Cedi was due to lack of faith, and it�s coming back to haunt us�, Mahama stressed. In the middle of August this year, famous motivational speaker and preacher, Dr Mensa Otabil, echoed fears expressed by a Yale Professor of Economics, Vikram Mansharamani that the country�s currency, could soon fall to as low as Gh�10 to a Dollar. �That scenario of 10 to 1 is a possibility. It can. I don�t wish it, I don�t expect it, I don�t pray for it�, he said, but added nonetheless that Ghanaians should face the reality that: �Things could get worse�. Speaking at an annual event, �Festival of Ideas� in the national capital, Accra, Dr Otabil said inasmuch as he wished prayers could save the local currency from losing further value against the Dollar and other major currencies of international trade, �...the Cedi has a very peculiar mind of its own�. The Cedi lost about 40 percent of value against the Dollar from the beginning of 2014. It began a recovery in September after $2.7 billion was infused into the economy through a $1 billion Eurobond flotation and $1.7 billion cocoa syndicated loan facility.