Former President John Dramani Mahama has accused the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) government of economic mismanagement, misguided policy choices, and incompetence during his campaign launch in HO. Mahama stated that the last six years have been the most difficult and challenging period in Ghana’s history, with the government exhibiting high levels of greed, corruption, arrogance of power, dishonesty, blatant state capture, and conflict of interest.
Mahama called for a change in leadership and policy direction in order to rescue the country from its present predicament. He emphasized that Ghana demands experience, not experiments, and togetherness, not divisiveness. He stated that the country is at a depressing phase in its history where the economy has been destroyed due to the systematic mismanagement, misguided and clueless policy choices, and incompetence of President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Bawumia.
Mahama lamented that Ghana is bankrupt, saddled with debt that it simply cannot pay, and has suffered the global humiliation of defaulting on its debts and being downgraded by credit rating agencies to the lowest levels in its history. He highlighted the unbearable pain inflicted on millions of Ghanaian households by hyperinflation and an ever-increasing price of basic items, including food. Parents are forced to make hard choices between seeking prompt health care for their sick children and providing meals for their families.
Mahama expressed his concern for the middle class, which stands the real risk of being wiped out on the back of an obnoxious debt restructuring program. The poor, who depend on the middle class for employment and sustenance, are on their own and uncertain of their fate. Aged pensioners have not been spared either, as they have been compelled to stage public manifestations in defense of their livelihoods even in their elderly state.
Mahama criticized the government officials for exhibiting high levels of greed, corruption, arrogance of power, dishonesty, blatant state capture, and conflict of interest. He highlighted that amid all the suffering, the government remains obstinate and refuses to back down from the costly missteps that led the country into this predicament. Instead, the government continues to waste the precious little resources on dodgy and misguided projects, programs, and a bloated government.
Mahama added that the national decay of the last six years has not been limited to the economy but extends to all aspects of the citizens’ lives. He urged Ghanaians to vote for a change in leadership and policy direction to save the country from its present state of affairs.
Mahama’s comments have generated a lot of reactions from the public, with many agreeing that the government needs to do more to address the economic hardship facing the country.
