FLASHBACK: Mahama running family and friends gov't – NPP

The NPP while in opposition in 2016 accused President John Mahama of employing and appointing his family members into office at the neglect of the ordinary citizen.

The then NPP Policy Advisor, Boakye Agyarko said this at a press conference on Monday, September 19, 2016, Accra.

Former president Mahama admitted that he only employed one relative which was the then deputy minister of Transport, Joyce Bawah while in office.

Three years down the line, the tables have turned with the NDC now pointing fingers to President Akufo Addo for appointing 65 relatives to occupy various positions in government this revelation was made by the NDC's Abraham Amaliba who was speaking on TV3’s New Day on Wednesday, July 17, 2019.

Nepotism can be identified in successive governments in Ghana and Africa as a whole.

In several instances, political leaders have been accused of running a ‘family and friends affair’ while in government.

Read the full story originally published on September 19, 2016 on Ghanaweb

The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has criticised government for failing to address the needs of all citizens but rather transforming the lives of only friends, family and cronies of the president.

NPP Policy Advisor Boakye Agyarko, who addressed a press conference at the party headquarters in Accra on Monday, September 19, indicated: “Even members of his [Mr Mahama’s] own party recognise that the president’s ‘Better Ghana Agenda’ has been for the benefit of only his family and friends.”

According to him, the president is “out of touch with the problems of the average Ghanaian” to the extent that he sees his “non-performance” in various sectors as a success.

He indicated that after four years of the Mahama government, there was nothing to show as tangible achievement on alleviating the plight of citizens, stressing that “when you speak to random people around Ghana, it appears their concerns, problems, and anxieties are the same: unemployment, bad roads, the lack of decent and affordable accommodation and the high costs as well as the falling standards in education and health”.

Mr Agyarko said President Mahama wanted Ghanaians to believe that if re-elected, he would “ensure equitable development for all our citizens”.

“The reality, however, is starkly different; development is highly skewed,” he noted.

For him, a president who cannot solve the “bread and butter” issues of citizens but rather makes the lives of Ghanaians worse cannot continue in office for another term.

He charged the electorate to ensure that they vote for a better life come December 7 during the presidential and parliamentary polls.