Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, the Deputy Minority Leader and NDC Member of Parliament for Ellembele, has unleashed a scathing critique of President Akufo-Addo’s eight-year tenure, describing it as a “timely reminder of how not to govern a country”.
Hon. Buah’s remarks came on the heels of the president’s final State of the Nation Address to Parliament on January 3.
He argued that Akufo-Addo’s poor performance was evident in the December elections, where the people of Ghana delivered a resounding “vote of rejection”.
“Let me remind His Excellency that his tenure in office will remain a timely reminder of how not to govern a country,” Buah stated.
He also claimed that the president’s poor performance was “confirmed on December 7th when the people of Ghana delivered the most overwhelming and emphatic vote of rejection any government has ever witnessed in the Fourth Republic”.
Buah also took aim at the president’s economic management, accusing him of reckless borrowing and mismanagement of state funds.
He noted that Akufo-Addo will be remembered as the first president to be cautioned by the IMF at the beginning and end of his term.
In a clever jab, Buah quipped that the president had left out an important account – his promise to God to build a cathedral – but chose to leave that matter between Akufo-Addo and his God.
“Mr President, you will be remembered as the first president who was cautioned by the IMF when you began, and you are still being cautioned at the end of your term. You left something very important in your account – you left out an account of your promise to God to build a cathedral. But, Mr President, I will leave that between you and your God,” he added.
Despite his dissatisfaction with the Akufo-Addo administration, Buah expressed hope for a brighter future under the incoming NDC government, led by President John Dramani Mahama.
“But let me also be quick to assure the good people of Ghana that hope is on its way. With President John Dramani Mahama and the NDC, we can once again have a brighter future, emerging from this glare of despair,” he said.