Former President John Dramani Mahama has revealed that he is not against the government's debt restructuring program but rather against the government’s failure to engage with domestic debt holders.
According to him, the government ought to have a national dialogue for everyone to understand the state of the economy.
Speaking at the Chatham House in London on Friday, January 27, on the theme “Africa’s Strategic Priorities and Global Role,” the former President said that he was ignored when he advocated for the government to engage in broad consensus before introducing the program.
“I am not opposed to debt restructuring. What has been the contention is the lack of dialogue and consultation with the debt holders on the domestic side. I know that negotiations are taking place with the bondholders on the external side but not the same treatment on the domestic side.
“I have been an advocate for dialogue. Before this whole crisis started, I advised the government and said they should hold a national dialogue on the economy, give us the state of the economy and let everybody understand and after that seek broad consensus behind the economic programme. But this was never done and what we expected will happen, happened,” he said.
He blamed government recklessness and borrowing for the current economic crisis.
“We had been raising the red flag since 2019 about the government’s reckless borrowing. Going onto the Eurobond market every year for 3 billion dollars and not investing it in the productive sectors of the economy and using most of it for consumption and that is what has ended us where we are,” he said.
