By Godwill Arthur- Mensah
Accra, Oct. 30, GNA – The Vice President and Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has offered responses to five questions posed to him by the former President John Mahama, also the flagbearer of the NDC, concerning the management of the economy.
In a social media post, Dr Bawumia queried Mr Mahama’s track record as Vice President and subsequently as President, and policies he implemented to resolve the economic challenges faced by the citizens at the time.
In an interesting twist, Dr Bawumia challenged Mr Mahama to a public debate and posed 50 questions to him.
The exchange of words and public rebuttals between the two major political contenders for the December 7 election has taken a centre stage in national discourse.
Mr Mahama recently, publicly posed five questions to Dr. Bawumia, focusing on Ghana’s economic difficulties, including the depreciation of the local currency, the cedi, the national debt increase, the rising inflation, and a reported GH¢24 million loan government took from the Bank of Ghana (BoG).
The NDC Flagbearer also inquired why Dr. Bawumia, an astute Economist and Head of Government’s Economic Management Team, has shifted from talking about economic issues, and focusing on digitalisation initiatives.
The questions posed by Mr Mahama reflected the long-standing concerns about Ghana’s economic direction.
While responding to Mr Mahama’s questions, Dr Bawumia through multiple social media platforms, said: “I would have thought he would be man enough to debate me in a one-on-one for the Ghanaian public to assess our respective policies, achievements and visions”.
Dr Bawumia told Mr Mahama not to hide behind those flimsy questions to avoid a debate with him.
The NPP Flagbearer was of the belief that a debate between the two front-runners for the December 7 polls would afford the electorate the opportunity to make their assessments among the two, who would serve their best interest.
Dr Bawumia’s 50 questions to Mahama focused extensively on his previous tenure, demanding accountability regarding job creation and social interventions to infrastructure and economic management.
The NPP Flagbearer questioned Mahama’s handling of Ghana’s energy crisis, popularly known as “Dumsor”, cancellation of teacher and nursing allowances, and the collapse of the banking sector.
Dr. Bawumia’s response also raised concerns over Mahama’s record on education, sponsoring advertisements to oppose the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy.
“Why was your government unable to create even a quarter of the jobs that our government has created?” Dr Bawumia asked, alongside questions on healthcare, infrastructure, and technological advancements that have become central to the NPP’s current agenda.
These public rebuttals marked a continuation of longstanding rivalries between the two political contenders for the December 7 Election.
In 2016, Bawumia also posed 170 questions to then Vice President Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, which went unanswered by the Mahama administration.
GNA