Watch: The five questions Mahama wants Bawumia to answer

The presidential candidate for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has publicly directed five key questions at Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the presidential candidate for the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The NDC's flagbearer's questions, which centered on the current economic challenges, including Ghana’s rising national debt, exchange rates, and soaring inflation, were in response to an earlier 170 questions Dr Bawumia had asked the then Vice President, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur. 

Speaking at a campaign rally, the NDC leader noted that, unlike the 170 questions Dr. Bawumia posed to then-Vice President Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur on the economy during the NPP’s time in opposition, he would limit his inquiry to just five critical questions.

Watch: The five questions Mahama wants Bawumia to answer https://t.co/XbC1s6ojIz pic.twitter.com/4NyvZLLASF

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Dr. Bawumia directed 170 questions at Mr. Amissah-Arthur, who was then Vice-President under Mr. Mahama. However, Mr. Amissah-Arthur declined to respond to any of them.

Mr Mahama started his questions by first, raising concerns over the depreciation of the Ghanaian cedi, asking, “Why is the exchange rate now 17 cedis to the dollar?”

He then questioned the dramatic increase in Ghana’s national debt, asking, “Why has Ghana’s debt increased from $120 billion to $767 billion in just eight years?”

He raised concerns about the country’s inflation rate, asking, “Why is inflation where it is? Why did it rise to 54% under your administration over the past eight years?” Mahama also questioned a recent 24 million cedis loan reportedly taken from the Bank of Ghana, asking, “Why did you borrow 24 million cedis from the Bank of Ghana?”

In a final critique, Mr Mahama questioned Dr Bawumia’s shift in focus from the economy to digitalisation, saying, “Why has he run away from the economy to focus on digitalization?” 

Recalling a previous debate, the NDC's flagbearer pointed out that Dr Bawumia had once posed 170 questions to the late Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur on similar economic issues.

“He posed 170 questions to my Vice President, Amissah-Arthur; he should go and answer those 170 questions. In fact, he should only answer these questions,” he stated. 

Meanwhile, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, the spokesperson for Dr. Bawumia's campaign team, has responded on social media, saying that the answers to Mahama’s questions are ready.