'Lazy' Akufo-Addo, Bawumia exposed over their appetite for borrowing - Jibril

Former deputy organizer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mahdi Jibril has described President Nana Akufo-Addo and his Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as lazy and dishonest politicians.

He premised his description on the fact that the current administration promised not to borrow but have increased Ghana’s debt stock astronomically with nothing to show for it.

The country’s total debt stock has hit GH¢214.9 billion ending November 2019.

This was contained in the January 2020 Bank of Ghana’s summary of financial and economic data released recently.

The GH¢214.9 billion total debt represents 62.1 per cent of Ghana’s-Debt-to-GDP ratio ending November 2019.

The $20.3 billion (GH¢111.9 billion) of the debt were borrowings done by the government in dollars and from outside the country (that is the external debt component). This represents 32.4 per cent of the country’s GDP.

On the other hand, GH¢109.2 billion of the debt, was borrowed locally, translating into 29.8 per cent of Ghana’s GDP (Domestic Debt Component).

Mahdi Jibril appearing on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm said the president and his vice have been badly exposed as dishonest politicians.

He said of all the so-called achievements under Nana Addo, the cost of living has increased, the free senior high school policy is being badly managed.

"The president came to tell us they will not borrow because borrowing was a lazy way of managing the economy. But they have added $123 billion to our debt stock. Is that a lazy way of managing the economy?”

The current data on our debt shows that, from November 2018 to November 2019, the total debt stock went up by GH¢42 billion to reach GH¢214.9 billion.

Every Ghanaian in the country could be owing about GH¢7, 163. That’s if the GH¢214.9 billion debt is shared among a population size of about 30 million.