Our economy is in crisis; admit it-Prof. Debrah tells President Mahama

An Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science of the University of Ghana, Professor Emmanuel Debrah, has challenged claims by the Mahama administration that the economy is doing well.

According to him, nobody can convince the intellectuals and even the ordinary Ghanaian to accept the fact that the economy is resilient when all the economic indicators have been weak under the current administration.

"The micro economic situation in the country is very bleak...and so nobody can convince us that the economy is doing well," he stated.

President John Dramani Mahama and officials of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) have claimed on many occasion that the country is experiencing a resilient economy contrary to what vice presidential candidate of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia wants Ghanaians to believe.

But Professor Emmanuel Debrah, speaking on the topic “Political, Economic and Social Context of the 2016 General Elections in Ghana' t a roundtable discussion sponsored by the International IDEA, insisted that the country’s economy was not doing well.

He enumerated a number of factors to buttress his point saying: “There is high rate of graduate unemployment to the extent that we have ‘Unemployed Graduates' Association of Ghana’, debt stock situation have increased proportionally and hanging on our neck, there is high inflation, high exchange rate and low standard of living.

“The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is near collapse, our road networks are bad, there is extreme poverty among Ghanaians, so how can government tell us that all is well with the economy?" Professor Debrah stated.

He underscored the need for government to accept the fact that the economy was not well and stop the propaganda approach.

Professor Debrah was confident that the electorates would cast their votes in the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections based on the current economic conditions in the country.

Making a presentation on the topic: 'The 2016 General Elections Stakes for the Ghanaian Youth’, Dr. Maame Gyekye Jandoh, who is a senior lecturer at the Department of Political Science of the University of Ghana, Legon, noted that majority of the youth were concerned about the rising graduate unemployment, health care problems and withdrawal of nursing and teacher trainee allowances and wanted the next government to address them.

She claimed that the youth also expected the next government to implement free education policy to allow more youth to enroll in school to prepare for the future.

Story by Mike Craig Afful

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