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Release
NPP
MONDAY, 22nd
February 2016
Bawumia Shreds NDC
Project Claims – Outlines 6 Reasons Why
Claims Must Be Rejected
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, NPP Running Mate, has
outlined six reasons why Ghanaians must
reject the NDC’s attempt to hoodwink the
public on claims of massive investments in
projects as the reality points to the
contrary.
Dr. Bawumia outlined these six reasons,
while delivering a lecture on the topic “The
Role of Financial Discipline and Investment
In National Development” at a National
Financial Literacy and Investment Summit
organised by the University Students
Association of Ghana (USAG) at the
University for Development Studies, Wa
Campus.
Where is the rest of the money and what
could it have done? Bawumia asks and
answers.
Dr. Bawumia pointed out that the NDC had
increased Ghana’s debt in seven years by
GHC90 billion, from GHC9.5 billion at the
end of 2009 to some GHC99 billion currently;
an equivalent of some 37 billion dollars at
the time of borrowing.
“First, If you sum the cost of all the loan
financed projects listed in the green book
(even including those with artistic
impressions, it is less than $7 billion.
Meanwhile, the government has borrowed the
equivalent of $37 billion so where is the
rest of the money? Indeed, given the
resources at its disposal one should expect
at least four times the quantum of
investment that the NDC claims to have
undertaken”, Dr. Bawumia said, as he began
listing the six reasons.
Dr. Bawumia proceeded to list a number of
things the over 30billion dollars from
borrowing the NDC cannot account for, could
have done, which proves that contrary to the
claims, the NDC has done a bad job at giving
Ghanaians their due after undertaking
unprecedented borrowing in the last seven
years.
“The close to $30 billion of borrowing that
was not used for projects could have inter
alia:
Developed the Rail network from Accra to
Paga and transformed many parts of the
country just by this investment.
Solved the water problems in Ghana
Solved the energy problem and not put the
country through 4 years of dumsor at the
cost of human lives and collapsing
businesses and unemployment
Put in place at least 1000 kilometres of
asphalted roads in each region. There will
be no major road problem left in any region
after this.
Transformed Agriculture in the Northern
regions, Afram Plains and Ghana through
investment in machinery, irrigation and dams
Put in place one world class hospital in
each region
Buy at least 1000 ambulances for the Ghana
Ambulance service
Set up factories with the private sector
across the country to add value to our raw
materials and create jobs. On the issue of
jobs, the question is, if the government has
taken a whole 4 years to solve a basic
problem like Dumsor, how long will it take
to address unemployment? At this pace, many
of the unemployed youths will be over the
pension age before the NDC finds a solution
to the unemployment problem.
Equip our existing health and education
institutions with state of the art
facilities
Build an additional 600 of the Senior High
Schools the government is currently trying
to build”, he said.
Fact: Investment to GDP has declined and
affected Economic Growth
The second
reason, according to Dr Bawumia, is the fact
that the data shows that contrary to all the
claims of the NDC, infrastructure spending
as a proportion of GDP has declined from an
average of 11% between 2001 and 2008, when
Ghana had no oil, to 5.7% between 2009 and
2015.
He explained that it was critical to measure
investment by looking at its proportion to
GDP because looking at just the nominal
figures does not tell the full story.
“To explain this point, if a person tells
you they have invested GHC 1000 in the
education of their children and another
tells you they have invested GHC 2000, you
cannot conclude that the second person has
invested more in his or her children if you
do not compare it against the number of
children in the family. If the first person
has one child and the second has 10
children, then the investment of the person
with one child will be higher (i.e. GHC1000
per child compared to GHC200 per child for
the second person).
“It is in this context that when we measure
the impact of investment, we look at it
relative to the GDP of a country. If as a
country, your investment in infrastructure
relative to GDP is declining, then your
growth is likely to decline. This background
is very important to understand what is
happening in Ghana today”, he said
Overpricing of projects and resort to
mediocrity
“The third reason why I say the NDC is
attempting to hoodwink Ghanaians with claims
of massive infrastructural investments is
that most of these projects are over-priced
as a result of the single source procurement
method, which has become the procurement
method of choice for this government, as we
saw in the SADA, GYEEDA, KARPOWER, SMARTYS
bus branding etc.. I would like to see for
example the government explanation from the
government quantity surveyors of the costing
on the Kumasi airport runway for $23.8
million. However, you and I know that they
would not explain because they cannot
explain”, Dr. Bawumia noted.
Touching on the fourth point, Dr. Bawumia
stated that since all governments undertake
infrastructural products, it is disingenuous
for the NDC to claim that as unprecedented,
especially when compared to resources
accrued, the NDC has done far less
investments in infrastructure compared to
the NPP government under former President
John Agyekum Kufuor for example, which had
less than ten times the resources the NDC
has had in seven years.
“The nation’s road network increased by
18,736 km and 29,970 km during the four (4)
and eight (8) years of NPP-led
administration respectively. At the end of
year 2008, the network size met as at the
end of December 2000 had been increased
about 80%. In contrast, the NDC government
has thus far added only 3,772 km to Ghana’s
road network. This means that the NPP
constructed 8 times more roads (km) than the
NDC even though they had 10 times more
money. Yet when you listen to Government
propaganda, they will tell you of the
massive road investments they are making.
Unfortunately for them the facts completely
disprove their attempt to hoodwink
Ghanaians.
“Indeed, it was His Excellency President
Mahama who told us that any government
touting projects as achievements is
conducting an exercise in mediocrity, So
what has changed? The real fact is that the
NDC has no real achievements to point to
outside the undertaking of some projects
hence their resort to mediocrity”, he said.
So-called Massive Investments Have Not
Translated into Job Creation & Production
“The fifth reason why I say the NDC is
attempting to hoodwink Ghanaians with claims
of massive infrastructural investments is
that infrastructural investment is not
supposed to be for its own sake but to
increase productivity and production in the
economy. The proof of the pudding, as they
say, is in the eating. If you have indeed
undertaken massive and unprecedented
infrastructural investment, then why is the
economy collapsing? - Why is the NHIS in
trouble? Why is unemployment on the
increase? Why are businesses collapsing? Why
is agricultural growth stagnant? Why is
manufacturing growth negative? Why is the
government having difficulty meeting
statutory payments?” he queried.
“The facts therefore show that the impact of
the NDC infrastructure investments have not
translated into increased output, job
creation and better living conditions for
the people of Ghana”, Dr. Bawumia added.
Ghanaians Can Rather Relate to a Worsening
in Social Services and Conditions
The sixth and final reason why the NDC’s
claims of projects should be rejected,
according to Dr. Bawumia, was the fact that
the so called massive investments being
claimed by the NDC have not translated into
an improvement in social services.
Dr. Bawumia touched on vital areas like
Water, Health and Education to explain that
despite the huge claims of the NDC, the
ordinary Ghanaian cannot relate to an
improvement in services and relief.
“The NDC claims to have put in over a
billion dollars in the area of water
infrastructure. Yet, today many places
across the country are seeing the worst
shortages of water in decades. So what is
the essence of the claims being made by the
NDC with respect to investments in water
when after seven years, the people are
rather seeing worse shortages than they were
before these so-called investments?” he
asked
Touching on Health, Dr. Bawumia pointed out
that despite the claims of huge investments,
the reality for many Ghanaians was the fact
that the NHIS is failing. He also noted that
despite the claims of massive investments,
many existing hospitals are crying for basic
equipment to deliver health care to the
people.
“What Ghanaians can relate to is the many
illnesses and drugs which have been taken
out of the NHIS care lists, the Capitation
policy and the situation where patients
seeking to be treated on the basis of
possession of the NHIS Card are turned away
in favor of patients with money. For many
Ghanaians, the sad reality is that the
killer Cash and Carry program, which the NPP
worked to cancel, has been technically
introduced back as a result of the failure
of the NHIA.
“Again, despite these huge claims of
investment, our Hospitals across the
country, keep crying over very essential
equipment and facilities. I had this sad
reality hit home when a close relative
passed away last year as a result of the
lack of oxygen at Tamale Teaching Hospital.
The recent closure of certain departments in
Korle-Bu also re-emphasizes this point”, he
noted
Dr. Bawumia cited the recent gory Kintampo
accident as another example of how despite
the huge claims of investments in Health,
the Ghanaian people cannot relate to an
improvement in healthcare.
“The latest case which brings this sad
reality into focus was the gory Kintampo
accident last week, which claimed over 60
lives. According to the Medical
Superintendent of the Kintampo Government
Hospital (where all the victims of the
accident were sent), Dr. Bismark Owusu Ofosu,
who spoke to the BBC’s Sammy Darko, some
victims of the accident who were brought in
alive died because the Hospital lacked some
vital logistics and medicine. “There is no
supply of oxygen. Even Common Emergency
Drugs are not available…” Dr. Owusu Ofosu
said while addressing the media on
Thursday.”
“Also, the Acting Administrator of the
Ambulance Service in the Brong Ahafo Region,
Samuel Karikari, confirmed to Citi News that
at the time of the accident, the only
Ambulance in Kintampo was out of commission.
He confirmed that the nearest Ambulances to
where the Accident occurred were all not
functioning. These factors ensured that it
took emergency services several hours to get
to the scene and save the lives of the
victims.”
“So again, what is the point in the claims
of massive investment in the Health Sector
when after seven years and with over 200
billion in Resources, we cannot sustain the
Health Insurance Scheme which was functional
when Ghana had less than 10 times the
resources this government has had; and
cannot provide vital logistics for our
existing Hospitals and service our
Ambulances to save the lives of our
countrymen?”, he probed.
Is Every Investment Necessary or Prudent?
Ending his dissection of the NDC claims of
massive investment, Dr. Bawumia stressed
that investments must be assessed critically
on the impact it makes to productivity and
lives and not just on the basis of numbers
that are bandied around.
“It is therefore clear that despite the huge
claims of investment, the reality for many
Ghanaians is that livelihoods have worsened
and social services are not functioning.
“One point I would like to make is that
investments must be assessed critically on
the basis of what they mean to production
and lives and not just on the basis of
numbers. For example, early reports on the
Kintampo Accident, which was later confirmed
to the Graphic by the Police, indicate that
the Accident could have been caused by a
faulty brake. So while the government may
add the recent GHC 3 million rebranding of
the MMT Buses as an investment in the Metro
Mass Transit Company, the question is, would
this investment not have been more prudent
if it was put in the maintenance and
servicing of these Buses? Will that not have
saved more lives and improved on the
effectiveness of the MMT, compared to the
decision to rebrand these Buses?” he asked.
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