The 2024 New Patriotic Party (NPP) running mate, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh (popularly known as Napo), has defended former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia against accusations that he abandoned economic responsibilities in the latter part of the Akufo-Addo administration.
In an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme, Dr. Opoku Prempeh described Bawumia’s increased focus on digitalisation during the government’s second term as a deliberate and strategic move to bolster the economy through innovative means, rather than an evasion of duty.
He explained that Dr. Bawumia played a prominent role in economic management during the first four years of the administration. However, the shift in emphasis in the subsequent term was necessitated by changing circumstances, where direct oversight of fiscal and macroeconomic policies may not have fallen squarely under his purview.
“Even during COVID-19, Ghana’s economy was one of the best managed. So what went wrong? Perhaps the economic challenges were not directly attributed to Bawumia during President Akufo-Addo’s second term,” Dr. Opoku Prempeh said.
He pointed to a notable incident involving 88 NPP Members of Parliament who publicly criticised the state of the economy and called for the dismissal of certain officials. According to him, Dr Bawumia was present during discussions around that time, yet the MPs directed their criticism elsewhere.
“When the 88 MPs from the NPP said the economy was not performing well and called for dismissals, Bawumia was present, yet they mentioned someone else’s name instead of his. If he was directly responsible for the economic situation, why wasn’t his name mentioned?” he questioned.
While acknowledging that he did not disagree with the MPs making their concerns public, Dr. Opoku Prempeh noted that he would have supported the dismissal of the named individual if it had been put to a private vote.
He reiterated that Bawumia’s extensive commentary on economic matters in the early years gave way to a primary focus on digitalisation in the later period. This, he stressed, was not an attempt to dodge responsibility but an adaptation to support economic growth through alternative channels.
“The fact that 88 MPs made that statement should tell us something important. Bawumia spoke extensively about the economy in the first four years, but in the last four years, he focused mainly on digitalisation. It was not an attempt to evade responsibility; perhaps economic management was no longer within his direct control, so he explored other avenues to support economic growth,” Dr. Opoku Prempeh concluded.