Former President John Dramani Mahama appears peeved with international diplomats for what he termed as wrong diagnosis of Ghana’s economy.
According to him, the country’s economy is not affected by what the international diplomats claim to be the cause.
He therefore warned them to be guided by what they say, believing that Ghana’s current poor economy is challenged by bad policies President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo led government initiated and not what the international diplomats think.
The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Ivanova Georgieva had attributed the current economic challenge facing Ghana to external factors such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking at the Africa Climate Change Adaptation Summit in the Netherlands, Ms Georgieva said the current global challenge calls for broader collaboration among global leaders.
“We are also recognising that this shock has exhausted our people,” she said. “People are tired of the pandemic and now they are hit a second time with inflation.”
“In many countries, the fiscal space is gone. When you look at the debt situation, for 25% of emerging markets that is not sustainable, just think of Sri Lanka and many countries that are in this position,” Georgieva said.
“Actually, we see a country with strong economy, with strong fundamentals like Ghana, in a situation, in which it is harder to tap into markets because of these exogenous shocks, and for poor countries, it is over 60% that are in debt stress,” the IMF boss said.
However, the 2020 Presidential Candidate of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in a post shared on Facebook on Thursday September 8, 2022 thinks contrary that “Ghanaians are undeserving of the uncertainty and hardship resulting from the ineptness of the Nana Akufo-Addo administration that has contributed massively to this mess.
“While the norm in international diplomacy of being guarded in what one says is appreciated, comments by high ranking officials must be grounded on facts that take into consideration local realities and opinions.
“The incontrovertible fact is that, Ghana is in a mess due to the BAD POLICIES of this government, which have contributed massively to the dire state of affairs.”
He wants the international diplomats to consider the fact that the country’s economy challenge is as a result of bad policies such as banking sector clean up, corruption and lack of accountability.
Mr. Mahama posited that “International diplomats must consider these facts and not just ignore them; lest they make wrong diagnosis and prescribe inappropriate remedies.
“The consequences of the government’s ill-advised policies such as the botched, insensitive and dubious cost in closing down locally owned banks, unbridled levels of corruption and lack of accountability including the mismanagement of COVID-19 funds, unconventional borrowing practices riddled with opaqueness and conflicts of interest, resulting in an unsustainable debt envelope, costly, experimental and untested programmes, etc., cannot be ignored in understanding the current dire state of the Ghanaian Economy.”
The NDC 2020 flagbearer was of the view that the comments by the international diplomats is not the reality on the ground.
“Therefore, the rhetoric that emanates from international diplomats must reflect local realities. The Ghanaian economy must be managed first for the Ghanaian who lives and experiences it daily, not just for an international audience,” he added.
Interestingly, the former President also said “It is a relief to hear Madam Kristina Georgieva reaffirms the commitment of the IMF to support the people of Ghana in these perilous times.”
By Vincent Kubi