It is now necessary, according to Vice-President Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, to position the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in a way that inspires confidence, hope, and trust “both in ourselves and the larger Ghanaian community in order to break the eight.”
That, he claimed, had grown in importance as a result of the nation’s socioeconomic struggles brought on by the COVID-19 outbreak and the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Things have not always gone as planned, and we have not accomplished everything we set out to do on the day we were sworn into office.
Despite the difficulties, we have produced a strong track record of successes, Dr. Bawumia stated.
The Vice-President was speaking at a conference that the NPP’s United Kingdom Chapter had organized in London.
Dr. Bawumia was in the UK to co-chair the 8th UK-Ghana Business Council (UKGBC) meeting in addition to attending the third Ghana Investments and Opportunities Summit (GHIOS), which was jointly organized by the Ghana Investments Promotion Centre (GIPC) and the Ghana High Commission in the UK.
Crisis
According to him, the pandemic disrupted international supply networks, and the reaction taxed the government’s resources.
According to him, “the war increased the prices of commodities in the country due to an inflation from 12.9% in December 2021 to 54% by December 2022 with an accompanying depreciation of the cedi by 30% in 2022.” Fertilizer and grain prices were among the other things that were negatively impacted by the war.
He claimed that the two crises occurred when the country was still paying $1 billion per year under a questionable energy Power Purchase Agreement inherited from the previous administration for power it had not used over the previous six years.
“These events’ combined effects harmed an economy that expanded at an average pace of approximately 2 percent.
Judge by achievement
The Vice President claimed that the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the primary opposition to the administration, had capitalized on the ominous trends to minimize its accomplishments during the previous six years.
Politicians and commentators alike have been talking a lot.
Politicians are rumored to talk a lot but rarely discuss their accomplishments, the speaker remarked.
Therefore, he urged Ghanaians to evaluate the NPP government on the basis of its accomplishments, noting that it had inherited a dire economic situation from the previous administration.
Many of the government’s programs and policies that were enacted after the NPP took office in 2017 were being implemented for the first time under the Fourth Republic, according to the Vice-President.
Among other things
“It is important to note that many of the transformational policy initiatives that we have introduced since 2017 are being done for the first time since independence and most have benefited women,” he stressed.
He added that because many of the measures had never been implemented before, many individuals believed that they were inconceivable and that only the government could have made them possible.
According to him, the government has already started implementing over 100 programs and projects.
Message
Dr Bawumia, one of the 11 flagbearer hopefuls of the NPP, urged party members to reject claims that the party would have no message to persuade voters.
Election Message
“Let nobody tell you that we don’t have a message for 2024.
I must hasten to add that this does not mean we have done everything we intended to do or ought to have done.
There is clearly a lot more to do and we will work hard to do more,” he intimated.
With the introduction of problem-solving policy initiatives, according to Dr. Bawumia, the NPP government headed by President Nana Akufo-Addo has accomplished a lot. He named a few of them, including the Ghana Card, Tax Identification Number (TIN), National Health Insurance Number, and development of the Elmina Fishing Harbour.