Over 70% of Mahama's address was from 2013 - Ken Agyapong

The Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong has described President Mahama’s State of the Nation Address as a rehash of the 2013 address to Parliament.

President Mahama Tuesday delivered the State of the Nation Address where he announced the announced the abolishing of fees in Day Senior High Schools by the 2015/1016 academic year.

The President said the “Ministry of Education had prepared a roadmap for the progressive introduction of free secondary education in Ghana as required by constitution.”

He added that it would cost 71 million cedis annually to implement the policy.

The President also described the current economic challenges as temporary, adding that Ghanaians will soon witness the benefits of the sacrifices his government is making.

The President blamed the Cedi’s depreciation on the over dependence of imports and the massive dollarization of the economy.

”I wish to assure this august house and the good citizens of Ghana that as with the taste of any bitter medicine this turbulence we are going through is temporary…I assure you that we shall begin to see the benefits of the sacrifices we are making very soon” President Mahama said.

He added that “despite the short-term challenges we face, our economic fundamentals remain sound and our mid-term goals are bright.”

But speaking on Asempa FM Tuesday, the outspoken legislator stated that over 70 percent of President Mahama’s address were issues he highlighted in his 2013 address and bemoaned the fact that the President had failed to be candid with Ghanaians on the true state of the nation.

He however added that despite the fact that President Mahama outlined some "brilliant" measures on how to halt the free fall of the cedi, those measures will fail since similar measures had failed in other countries.

He urged the President to consult the opposition NPP to help him come up with pragmatic measures to solve the current economic crisis.