About 66% of Ghana\u2019s total debt since independence, has been accumulated under President John Mahama, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) running mate for the 2016 general election has said.<\/p>\n
He said as a result of the mismanagement of the Ghanaian economy and \u201creckless\u201d and \u201cunbridled\u201d borrowing, the country doles out more cash to make interest payments than it spends on infrastructural\/ capital projects annually.<\/p>\n
Dr. Bawumia said this whiles delivering a public lecture on the theme: \u201cThe State of the Ghanaian Economy-A Foundation of Concrete or Straw\u2019, ahead of the 2016 general election.<\/p>\n
[contextly_sidebar id=”UtzzqpUapkcKl2kSw3kdGyn6AfXSk7Jk”]According to him, interest payments alone in 2015, stood at GHC9.6 billion, more than the total debt of Ghana at the end of 2008.<\/p>\n
He disclosed that interest payment on the debt stock in 2015 was six times Ghana\u2019s oil revenue.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe oil discovery has basically been compromised over the last seven years by the government\u2019s recklessness and incompetence, \u201dthe NPP presidential running mate pointed out.<\/p>\n
Dr. Bawumia noted that, Ghana\u2019s Debt total had ballooned from GHC9.5billion to GHC105 billion at the end of May 2016.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe real effects of the reckless borrowing undertaken in the last seven years is seen in the magnitude of interest payments Ghana has been burdened with, which has meant that, vital resources which should have gone into vital sectors, infrastructural development and social services, are now being pumped into settling our debt obligations.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo put the interest payments on the debt in context, we should note that the entire allocations in the 2016 budget to the Ministries of Roads and Highways, Trade and Industry, Food and Agriculture, Water Resources, Works and Housing, Youth and Sports, and Ministry of Transport amounted to a total of GH\u00a22.1 billion.<\/p>\n
\u201cInterest payments in 2016 (GH\u00a210.5 billion) would be five times what was allocated to these six key ministries combined,” he noted.<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cAs interest payments go up, the space for development shrinks, and this is all due to financial indiscipline.\u00a0 At the end of 2008, Ghana\u2019s total interest payments amounted to GH\u00a2680 million.\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
However, the data, Dr. Bawumia indicated, shows the NPP administration saw capital expenditure far exceeding interest payments.<\/p>\n
He said this is because low interest payments allow room for more capital expenditure.<\/p>\n
\u201cInfrastructure expenditure as a percentage of GDP declined sharply after 2008, as interest payments increased. From 2014 to date, interest payments have now incredibly exceeded infrastructure expenditure.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow can an economy be on an upward growth path when interest payments exceed infrastructure expenditure? This is the result of NDC\u2019s economic mismanagement,\u201d he\u00a0added.<\/p>\n
_<\/p>\n
By: Awudu Mahama\/ghelections.com\/Ghana<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
About 66% of Ghana\u2019s total debt since independence, has been accumulated under President John Mahama, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) running mate for the 2016 general election has said. He said as a result of the mismanagement of the Ghanaian economy and \u201creckless\u201d and \u201cunbridled\u201d borrowing, the country doles out more cash […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":246887,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[32,11],"tags":[389,1766,42,3,56,11721],"yoast_head":"\n