The year was 2016 and then Vice Presidential candidate Dr Mahamudu Bawumia was running amok. From economic lectures to forums, Dr Bawumia was all over the place, punching the Mahama government and proffering what then appeared to be tailored solutions to the teething economic challenges confronting the Mahama government.
Among the plethora of issues, Bawumia exhibited his perceived superior knowledge in economics on was the return of Ghana to the IMF in 2016.
In a video that has been making the rounds on social media, the man christened 'Economic Messiah' broke down the various issues that culminated in Ghana seeking help from the IMF once more.
He said, “This is how we ended up in the IMF. We were spending too much relative to the revenue which is true. We were borrowing too much which is true. Your external payment position has deteriorated, which is true and your growth is reducing so you ended up at the IMF and the IMF will impose certain conditions which are true, and if you don’t do certain things right the anchor will not hold which is also true. So, I’m not quite sure what it is which is not true what I said. The supporters of this government and this government itself are reluctant to accept.”
Six years on, Bawumia has ascended to the role of Vice President and his government has choked on its own puke by returning the IMF.
The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo instructed the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta to begin formal negotiations with the IMF in July 2022.
The move became necessary after Ghana was unable to access funds from the international market. Ghana’s debt has become unsustainable amid rapid inflation and the free fall of the Ghana cedi.
The country is expecting to receive about $3 billion dollars from the IMF to shore up its reserves and boost investor confidence.
John Mahama and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia