Freddie Blay, a former New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Chairman, has waded into the argument concerning President Akufo-Addo’s performance in government.
According to Freddie Blay, Akufo-Addo deserves high marks for how he handled the economy in his eight years in office.
He emphasised that the Akufo-Addo Bawumia administration, infrastructure, institutional development, education, health, and employment are supreme.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday, July 16, Freddie Blay noted, “In terms of performance, and I’m being very sincere with you, I think Nana Akufo-Addo’s government did very well”
“In terms of handling the economy, building infrastructure, building institutions in this country, both political and security institutions, hospitals and education.”
“I think his government did very well in terms of even providing employment in the history of this country; that government did extremely well”, he added.
Freddie Blay further added that the NPP did not lose the 2024 election because of Akufo-Addo’s performance, but rather due to the party’s grassroots frustration and apathy.
“Maybe the only thing we failed to do was to carry along our membership, a greater portion of our members, and some got quite frustrated, and therefore refused to go and vote”, he added.
However, Eugene Boakye Antwi, the former Member of Parliament for Subin, has stated that the best years of former president Akufo-Addo’s 8-year tenure were 2018, 2020.
According to Eugene Boakye Antwi, Ghana’s economy was on the right track before COVID-19 struck and all hell broke loose.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Face to Face on Tuesday, July 1, Eugene Boakye Antwi stated, “I’m not worried because some of us anticipated it [2024 electoral defeat]. If you fail to listen to people, they punish you. So, as politicians, we must constantly be listening and hearing people out. And that is what we failed to do”.
“We have to be very frank with ourselves, the best years of Akufo-Addo’s 8 years [tenure] were 2018, 2020, before COVID-19 struck. Those were his best years.
In your first term, you are expected to be voted for the second term, so you’re working towards your second term. So there’s more cooperation, and because you know you have to go and face the electorate again, you are careful of certain mistakes,” he explained.
“But the second term, because you’re not going to contest again, I think all hell broke loose and it cost us,” he added.
The former lawmaker added, “The economy was on the right track before COVID-19 struck. COVID-19 struck, and all hell broke loose. We then had to introduce more austere policies like the E-Levy, Betting Tax, and what have you. And those kinds of policies did not help”.
“After the International Monetary Fund, there were other austere policies like the DDEP, and what have you. Former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo addressed the nation and assured our savers, pensioners, and investors of no haircut, but there was a haircut. The haircut wiped away investments, pensions, and savings. And that hurt us very badly. It just didn’t impact the economy; it wounded us,” he stressed.
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