The Founder and President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, has fired back at Dr. Ekow Acquah, a Political Communications Consultant, who criticized him for questioning Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s claims about policies he has championed under the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government.
Dr. Ekow Acquah, in an open letter to Franklin Cudjoe, accused the IMANI President of having politically motivated criticisms aimed at discrediting Dr. Bawumia’s efforts.
He wondered how an experienced policy think tank leader could underestimate such crucial initiatives that are fundamental to the transformation of modern economies.
“Your recent analysis on your Facebook page, where you claimed that Bawumia’s 33 policies have had no impact on the economy and the country, was baseless and shocking. Are you serious? Are you really Franklin Cudjoe of IMANI? When I first saw this claim on your page, I thought it was a joke, but upon further investigation, I realized it was indeed from you, the head of a policy think tank with over 20 years of experience!” he wrote.
The political communications consultant continued, “Mr. Franklin, do you truly believe that transformative policies spearheaded by Dr. Bawumia, such as One Constituency, One Ambulance, Zipline Medical Drone, Mobile Money Interoperability, Ghanacard national biometric identity, national property address system, digitalization of public services, Agenda 111, Zongo Development Fund, and others, have not had any impact on the economy? Even if you are trying to be politically mischievous, you should consider your integrity.”
In response, Franklin Cudjoe, in a Facebook post shared on June 28, 2024, criticized the political communications consultant.
The IMANI boss slammed Dr. Ekow Acquah, calling his criticism “disturbingly illiterate and illogical reactions”.
“I am puzzled by how some people process information. I have read some disturbingly illiterate and illogical reactions to my recent comments about Bawumia’s economic stance by a certain political and communication consultant, Dr. Ekow Acquah,” he wrote.
Cudjoe maintained that the vice president should not boast about policies he championed that have not alleviated the country’s economic challenges.
“I emphasized that Bawumia should address the key economic indicators he discussed eloquently in opposition. These include the exchange rate, interest rates, inflation, borrowing, and debt. All of these are worse now than during Mahama’s tenure.
“In fact, these indicators have reached unprecedented levels and have severely impacted our economy, resulting in a debt exchange that was largely achieved through aggressive depletion of our savings, ultimately leading to a $4bn savings while we struggle in the international markets.”
He added that the damage to Ghana’s economy outweighs the significance of Bawumia’s 33 initiatives.
“How can any sane compare this destructive neglect of basic macroeconomic management principles, which has pushed millions of Ghanaians further into poverty, to the stand-alone initiatives Bawumia has focused on? I have not claimed that those initiatives are not valuable. What I have said, and will reiterate, is that they are insignificant compared to the harm caused by the economic management team’s failure to address inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, debt, and borrowing,” he stated.
See Franklin Cudjoe’s full post below:
ghanaweb.com
