Mahama demands response from Bawumia on 5 issues

The Presidential Candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has thrown down the gauntlet, challenging Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to address five critical economic issues ahead of the December 7 polls.

At a rally in Kpandai, Northern Region on Tuesday, as part of his campaign tour of the region, Mr Mahama asked Dr Bawumia to explain why the exchange rate had skyrocketed to GH¢17 cedi to a dollar.

He also queried the significant increase in Ghana's public debt from Gh¢120 billion to GH¢767 billion in just eight years.

Additionally, Mr Mahama sought clarification on the factors leading to the 54 per cent inflation rate and the decision to borrow GH¢42 billion from the Bank of Ghana.

Mr Mahama also questioned Dr Bawumia's shift in focus from the economy to digitisation, asking why he had seemingly abandoned his previous lectures on economic management.

He criticised Bawumia for his silence on these pressing issues, reminding him of his previous boasts about economic expertise. 

170 questions

The former president was challenging Vice-President Bawumia to provide answers to the questions since he had posed 170 questions to the late Vice-President Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur in the run-up to the 2016 elections.

Dr Bawumia, then running mate to Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, challenged the late Amissah-Arthur, then Head of the Economic Management Team in his famous “Real State of the Economy” lecture to answer the 170 questions.

The questions centred on the indicators of the economy from growth rate, inflation, exchange rate, debt to GDP, and cost of living among others.

Mr Mahama said having been taunted as the economic messiah to salvage the country, Dr Bawumia is now running away from the “failed economy” he had overseen over the last eight years as chair of the economic management team.

“Bawumia used to give lectures every month on how to run an economy but today he is running away from the economy.

He said Ghanaians knew that the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government had mismanaged the economy.

The mismanagement, he said, had led to over US$2 billion indebtedness to the independent power producers resulting in the return of intermittent power supply.

The NDC, he said, had in store pragmatic measures to return the economy to growth and prosperity for all.

In response to Dr Bawumia’s 50 questions, Mr Mahama urged the NPP Presidential Candidate to answer the five questions as a debate between them was not necessary.

“You can hide behind a debate, you don’t need a debate to answer the five questions, when you asked Ammisah- Authur 170 questions you didn’t agree to go debate for him to answer them.  Akufo- Addo too I have given him two questions he should come and answer them.

“You have destroyed the economy and that is true, even if you look at the 50 questions he asked me, he has skilfully avoided the economy, there is nothing on the economy. Because you were brought in to fix the economy and the economy is in a terrible state, just answer the five questions”.