Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has issued a sharp rebuttal to former President John Mahama, challenging him to a public debate on their respective economic records.
Addressing a rally in Nungua in the Krowor Constituency, Dr. Bawumia dismissed Mahama’s criticism of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government as a “failed government,” describing the claims as baseless and unsupported by data.
“He said he has performed better than us, and I said if you believe that, come for a debate. But he has run away,” Dr. Bawumia declared to an enthusiastic crowd.
Countering Mahama’s remarks on social media, Dr. Bawumia argued that every key economic indicator demonstrates that the NPP government has outperformed the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration led by Mahama.
“Let me tell him and those around him to listen this evening as I explain the data. Over all GDP growth, agriculture, industry, budget deficit, trade balance, and even gross international reserves – we have performed better than him in all these areas,” the Vice President asserted.
Comparing Exchange Rates and Crises
Dr. Bawumia also tackled the issue of exchange rate depreciation, emphasizing that the NPP government has managed the cedi better than Mahama’s administration, despite facing global crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Under the NDC’s eight years, the cedi depreciated by 74% without a global crisis. Under the NPP, with significant global challenges, we’ve managed a 72% depreciation. If they claim we mismanaged the cedi, then they mismanaged it worse, without any crisis,” he stated.
Achievements Across Sectors
Dr. Bawumia listed the NPP government’s accomplishments in infrastructure, job creation, and social services, contrasting them with what he described as Mahama’s failures.
“We’ve created 2.3 million jobs, built more roads, airports, hospitals, interchanges, schools, and sports facilities than him. We’ve restored teacher and nursing training allowances, introduced Free Senior High School Education, and implemented numerous digital initiatives like the Ghana Card, mobile money interoperability, and e-pharmacy,” he added.
Turning sarcastic, Dr. Bawumia said, “If there’s any failure, it is that we failed to replicate Mahama’s four years of dumsor, cancelled allowances, and collapsed NHIS. On these, we gladly failed.”
Call for a Debate
Dr. Bawumia concluded by reiterating his call for a one-on-one debate with Mahama to settle the matter. “He should come and debate me, and we will get into the data to see who has succeeded and who has failed,” he said.
The Vice President’s fiery remarks have reignited the political debate over the country’s economic direction as Ghana approaches the next election.
