A recent statement attributed to Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia asserting that former President John Dramani Mahama had produced "the worst economic performance of all Presidents in the Fourth Republic" was sharply rebutted by the founding president and chief executive officer of the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education. Based on a detailed examination, Mr. Cudjoe's criticism of Dr. Bawumia's remark compared the economic conditions of the previous President Mahama administration with those of the present administration, which is led by President Nana Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.
He voiced doubt about Dr. Bawumia's purported claim, asking, "Really? Is this quote correctly credited to someone else or incorrectly ascribed to you, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia? In any case, it is untrue! In order to support his claim that the current administration had seen considerably more significant setbacks in its economic history than did former President Mahama, he next provided a comparison timeline. Comparisons of Exchange Rates Mr. Cudjoe started his research by presenting the inflation and foreign exchange rates as important measures of economic stability.
As Vice President and Head of the Economic Management Team, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia oversaw a major devaluation of the cedi, which is currently trading at about GHS 17.4 to the US dollar, compared to GHS 4 under former President Mahama in 2016. He also pointed out that the cost of cement, a common building material, has increased from GHS 24 under the tenure of former President Mahama to more than GHS 105, underscoring the financial strain on regular people.
Comparisons of Debt Accumulation and Fiscal Discipline Ghana's debt accumulation and fiscal strategy are the most controversial topics in Mr. Cudjoe's answer. He claimed that between 1957, when the country gained independence, and 2016, its debt had increased to GHS 120 billion. However, he pointed out that the debt has increased by an unprecedented GHS 643 billion to GHS 763 billion under the current administration.