A former President, John Dramani Mahama, is hopeful the National Democratic Congress will return to power in 2020.
The former President believes Ghanaians will opt for the NDC in the 2020 election, given the hardship they are currently facing under the NPP government.
“”I am sure that NDC will be given another chance because wherever you go in the country, people complain of hardship. When we were in government, they said there was hardship and at the time petrol a gallon was 14 cedis and today it is 26. At some places it is 25, and other places 24. People have seen the pinch.”
“During NDC’s period in government, we see rapid development in terms of infrastructure, and then we see some relief in terms of people’s living and then we see improved economic living. If NDC comes to power, we will relieve some of the hardship you are feeling currently.”
He made these comments while addressing party delegates in Gushegu in the Northern Region.
The former President has since Friday been addressing delegates in the Northern Region as part of his nationwide campaign tour to lead the party into the 2020 presidential elections.
‘You can lecture on economy; but reality will expose you’ – Mahama mocks Bawumia
While addressing delegates of the party in Tatale in the Northern Region, the former President ridiculed the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) over the challenges it is facing in managing the country’s economy.
According to him, the NPP was only good at making promises ahead of the 2016 elections,. but lacked the ability to properly manage the economy and deliver on those promises.
He said the NPP government has led Ghanaians into untold economic hardship and the current situation of Ghanaians was a testament to the poor management.
“You can do all the propaganda you like to win political power, when you come to government; the reality of the people’s life will expose you,” he said.
“Where are the factories, where are the dams, where is the $1 million per constituency. It is easier to make electoral promises than to fulfill them. Making promises is easy, fulfilling them is a problem. That is what NPP has taught us. It is easier to give political lectures on the economy than to manage the economy,” he added.
John Mahama also subtly chided the Vice President, Dr. Bawumia, saying that his prowess in delivering lectures on the economy did not make him a better manager of the economy.
It would be recalled that in the run-up to the 2016 elections, Dr. Bawumia who was then the NPP’s choice for Vice President made several public statements including a widely broadcasted public lecture on the state of the Ghanaian economy under John Mahama’s administration in which he sought to declare the then government incompetent and unable to manage the economy well.
Despite the NDC government’s subsequent attempts to discount Dr. Bawumia’s claims, the NPP managed to kick them out of power, among other things, on account of many promises it made to Ghanaians and pledge that it will ensure economic prosperity by managing the economy better.
However, John Mahama observed that the NPP has been unable to practice what they preached, after almost 20 months of being in power.
Mahama told the delegates that, “any economics lecturer can give lectures on the economy, but not every lecturer can manage the economy,” referring to Bawumia.
