Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia on countless occasions said the depreciation of the cedi to major foreign currencies was worse under the Mahama administration.
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FLASHBACK: Cedi depreciation worse under Mahama - Bawumia
Despite having more resources in the history of Ghana, the data on Ghana's economy shows that the years under former President John Mahama and President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo have been worse than any period since the dawn of this century.
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia
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"In the area of the exchange rate which some people have been talking about recently, I just want Ghanaians to know that in 2012, the cedi depreciated by 17 percent in 2013," he said.
He said: "in 2014 it depreciated by 32 per cent and in 2015 and 2016 it depreciated by 11.9 percent and 9.7 percent respectively."
He added that "Under Nana Akufo-Addo, the cedi depreciated by 4.4 percent in 2017 and in 2018, the depreciation rate was 8.8 percent. In 2019, so far the cedi has depreciated by 3.6 percent."
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He also revealed that the current government has brought down the country's deficit to 3.9 percent from the 9.3 per cent it inherited from the NDC, adding "So we have reversed what we inherited and this is the lowest deficit in the last 10 years.
He said government had fulfilled its major 2016 electioneering campaign promises to Ghanaians.
He also said the NPP government had performed far better in managing the depreciation of the Ghana cedi in relation to the US dollar than the erstwhile Mahama-led NDC administration.
Making reference to data from the Bank of Ghana (BoG)to buttress his point last year, Dr Bawumia said: "The Cedi exchange rate increased from 1.1 to 4.2 to the dollar between 2008 and 2016. At the time we assumed office, the cedi exchange rate was some 4.2 cedis to the dollar. Today, if you look at the Bank of Ghana data, it is at 4.75 to the dollar. It is, therefore, absolutely clear and incontrovertible that we, as a government, under Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's leadership, and the management at the ministry of finance; and the Bank of Ghana, it is clear that we have managed the exchange rate much better than our predecessors."
Veep Dr Mahamudu Bawumia
Pulse Ghana
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The story of Bawumia taking swipe at the NDC has changed. Currently, the US dollar is selling at between GH¢5.00 and GH¢5.20.
Meanwhile, some currency dealers are trading GH¢5.30 and GH¢5.32 for a dollar.
Dr. Bawumia boasted of arresting the dollar and giving the keys to the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
"When we came in, it [cedi] was running, essentially we have arrested it [cedi], and the IGP has the keys, he’s locked it up, we want to make sure we pursue sound policies to keep the cedi stable, it has appreciated for this year," Bawumia stated.
However, the Director of Treasury at the Bank of Ghana, Steven Opata, said the country's economic fundamentals are still solid despite the continuous depreciation of the cedi.
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He said the cedi has improved significantly in terms of fiscality and is expected to bounce back soon.
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