Ghanaians would have been in extreme poverty if Mahama was president – Owusu Bempah

The Deputy Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Ernest Owusu Bempah, has reaffirmed that the NPP remains the best political vehicle for Ghana's economic management.

According to him, despite the current difficulties, the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo-led administration has managed the Ghanaian economy better than the previous NDC administration.

“During the Mahama administration, Ghana’s economy was running at a 3 percent growth rate. Under the NPP before Covid-19, it was doing 8 percent, which tells you how we managed the economy better than the NDC.

“One can imagine if Mahama and his NDC were leading this country, Ghanaians by now will be wallowing in abject poverty, people wouldn’t be able to afford three square meals a day,” he said during an engagement with the media.

Owusu Bempah argued that the current economic problems cannot be blamed on poor administration but rather on external forces that are beyond the control of the government.

Pointing to the Covid-19 outbreak and the year-old conflict between Russia and Ukraine as the key drivers of the economic crisis.

He added that, in spite of the country's economic challenges, the NPP is well-positioned to win the 2024 presidential elections.

“But we believe that as a political party before the 2024 elections, these challenges shall pass and NPP will come out united to win the elections and break the 8,” he added.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has expressed optimism that Ghana will conclude talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a financial bailout programme.

According to President Akufo-Addo, though the government's debt exchange programme was fraught with several challenges after its announcement, it has largely been accepted by the citizenry.

He made this known when the German Federal Minister of Finance, Christian Lindner, paid him a visit at the Jubilee House.

The government has announced 85% subscription rate for the DDEP which faced stiff challenges from a range of bondholders.

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is due to appear before Parliament to answer questions on the programme.

AM/SARA