The Presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr John Mahama, and his Communications Officer, Sammy Gyamfi, have contradicted each other about the rising debt stock under the President Akufo-Addo regime.
Mr. Mahama is saying that Every Ghanaian owes GHC9,000 whiles Sammy Gyamfi is also saying something different.
Addressing residents of Kakasunaka in the Kpone Katamanso constituency on Wednesday as part of his campaign tour of the Greater Accra Region, Mr Mahama said the government has since the year 2017 borrowed GHC157 billion, thereby increasing the debt to GDP ratio to an unprecedented 76.7 per cent.
“The recommended debt to GDP profile for a middle-income country is that we should remain not more than 60 per cent debt to GDP. If you pass 60 per cent and you go to 70 per cent and above, you are becoming highly debt distressed, which is the same as HIPC. If we take that debt and divide it amongst all Ghanaians, including children, everybody owes almost GHC 9000,” he said.
On the other side, Sammy Gyamfi, Mahama’s party communicator at a press briefing on Monday said: “per our current total Public debt of GHS258.8 billion (i.e. as at June 2020), every Ghanaian in Ghana today is indebted to the tune of GHS10,000.”
Sammy Gyamfi added that the country’s public debt has surpassed the suitable debt verge “There is no gainsaying the fact that our current debt position (i.e debt to GDP ratio of 76.7%), is highly unsustainable and exceeds the acceptable debt threshold.”