The paradox of high expectations under the worst inherited economy

It is said that to whom much is given, much is expected. This is exactly the current situation between President-elect John Dramani Mahama and Ghanaians. The outcome of the recent election clearly suggests that Ghanaians have enormous confidence in the former president and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The expectations are high, but it is important for Ghanaians to realistically understand the economic mess and minimize the level of expectations.

The President-elect and his team have the expertise and experience to reset the country to the Ghana we all want. However, the incoming government is unfortunately inheriting the worst economy ever bequeathed to a new government since independence.

When Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was sworn into office at the forecourt of the Black Star Square as the president of the republic on January 7, 2017, 1 United States Dollar (USD) was equal to GH¢4.1 and 1 Great Britain Pound Sterling (GBP) was equal to GH¢5.90. The country’s Debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 54%, and the national debt stock had reached GH¢122.6 billion. The year-on-year inflation rate as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 15.4% in December 2016, down by 0.1 percentage point from the 15.5% recorded in November 2016.

The NPP, while in opposition, condemned this and branded these indicators as cyphers of incompetence and ineptitude by the government of former president John Dramani Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC). They denigrated, vilified, maligned, and eviscerated former President John Mahama with all sorts of disparaging adjectives. They promised to better manage the economy with a lower exchange rate, lower debt to GDP, lower inflation, and lower cost of living.

Eight years after the administration of President Akufo-Addo and his Vice, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, USD 1 is equal to GH¢16 while 1 GBP is equal to GH¢20.55. This is in spite of the fact that the government has suspended servicing its foreign debt; the situation would have been worse than it is now. Inflation is 24%, and debt to GDP is 86%. The country’s debt stock is currently GH¢742 billion as of June 2024.

Moreover, a bag of cement was selling at GH¢20 in 2016 but is GH¢110 today. A gallon of diesel was GH¢18 in 2016; today a litre is selling at GH¢16.60, therefore a gallon is GH¢61.42 (from GH¢18 in 2016 to GH¢61.42 in 2024) under the current government, which claimed to be competent. The unemployment rate was 7% in 2016; today it stands at 15%.

In 2016, according to the Transparency International’s released corruption perception index (CPI), the NDC’s worst performance was 43, which is better than the NPP’s best performance of 41.

In view of the above economic indicators that evidently show that the NPP has badly managed the economy from 2017 to date, this is the perfect description of incompetence. Ordinarily, one would have expected the NPP to bow their heads down in shame and shut up or at least exert their energy towards addressing these challenges. Yet, they have the impudence and impertinence to go around the country claiming to be the better managers of the economy. In the end, they are leaving behind an economy in complete shambles, which will require extra effort to bring it back to where it was before the 2016 elections.

Despite the obvious failure and the country’s lack of direction, these same people were shamelessly and disrespectfully shouting “breaking the eight” instead of “fixing the mess.” If they had principles, integrity, and a scintilla of respect for Ghanaians, they would not even contest the 2024 elections after this obvious abysmal performance. Thank God Ghanaians did not fall for their lies. Good riddance.

Inexcusably, the members of the government and their communicators have shown clear disrespect to Ghanaians. They do not think we are intelligent; they think Ghanaians are gullible and naïve. It therefore comes as no surprise when Ghanaians humiliated them at the polls. However, the incoming NDC government is left with an unprecedented economic mess to fix.

The least Ghanaians deserved from the current and outgoing government was an honest and candid apology, but we never got any because the government was in denial. The NPP communicators tried to justify the current economic mess with the flimsiest excuse of COVID-19.

This irritated and infuriated Ghanaians. In actual fact, this government has benefited from COVID-19 and is still benefiting. The only government in the world who has introduced COVID-19 is the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government. This is despite the fact that the government has received over USD 3 billion from the IMF and the World Bank as COVID-19 relief funds.

I crave the indulgence of Ghanaians to limit the expectations from the incoming government because it is inheriting the worst economy since independence.

Watch as Parliament pays tribute to late Ghanaian boxing legend Clement Ike Quartey Snr