Bishop Stephen Bosomtwe Ayensu
Bishop Stephen Bosomtwe Ayensu, the former Methodist Bishop of Obuasi Diocese, has responded to questions voiced by some people about why he and other respectable men of God have refrained to denounce the Nana Addo-led administration for its faults, as they did under former President John Mahama.
According to the man of God, President Akufo-Addo and his administration have done their best to manage the country despite the problems.
He opined that our leaders have provided a reasonable explanation for why we are experiencing these difficult times.
He attributed the challenges to global factors, including the outbreak of COVID-19.
When asked why he took former President John Dramani Mahama to the cleaners, describing him as dull and incompetent, he said that was because the economy under him was under challenges.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5 FM, the man of God indicated that the current administration, compared to the previous NDC government, has done better.
The host, Kwabena Agyapong, asked why he has taken a posture of asking Ghanaians to exercise patience and pray to support the government instead of calling it out like it did to Mahama, he said, “Thank you for making reference to such stories where I gave it to Mahama. It is good to reference such records. It helps by giving us an opportunity to recollect the past.
"When you go into an examination hall, you answer the questions with the expected answers and not different answers. When journalists call me for an interview, I provide answers based on the questions they ask me. If you have good intentions or bad ones and you ask your questions, I will respond with my answers.
"Under Mahama, I responded by providing answers to the kinds of questions I was asked. Those who conduct the interviews also have their agenda.”
On the specific question of the performance of the Akufo-Addo and the management of the economy, the man of God said if we would speak the truth, we would see the indicators and the performance of the government.
"The outbreak of COVID-19 was devastating, and its impact was severe. The attention we gave to it and its management had a lot of impact on us. So sometimes we have to look at records to see what has happened. We need to appreciate that Nana Addo did well until the outbreak of COVID-19.
He said even commercial Sex workers had their payments reduced, but the Akufo-Addo government did not reduce the salaries of workers.
“Things became so difficult that even commercial sex workers had their payments reduced. But the government did not reduce the salaries and wages of workers.
"Those who did not even go to work were paid their salaries. We were provided with free water and electricity. From the perspective I am speaking from, I believe things were going well until the global crisis came in.
He added that the president has admitted publicly that things were difficult and has assured us that he is working to address them.
