Claim: News reports claim the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, John Mahama, promised to stabilise the cedi in the first 100 days of office.
Verdict: False. National Democratic Congress flagbearer John Mahama’s statement has been misinterpreted. He meant he would launch an urgent economic and fiscal consolidation plan following a national economic dialogue within his first 100 days in office toward stabilising the economy.
Full Text
The current state of Ghana’s economy has sparked a public backlash against the government, largely because of the continuous depreciation of the cedi. On Wednesday, May 29, 2024, the Bank of Ghana reported that the cedi was trading at 14 cedis to the dollar.
There have been numerous calls for the government to stabilise the cedi against the dollar. The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has repeatedly chastised the government for depreciating the cedi to the dollar. But has its flagbearer John Mahama promised to do so within his first 100 days in office?
Some news reports, including those on ghanaweb.com and newscentral.africa, have published this claim. A news item captioned “I will restore the cedi in 100 days – John Mahama” has been viewed over 50,000 times on GhanaWeb.
Given the importance of holding political parties accountable for their campaign promises when they win an election, DUBAWA fact-checked this claim to determine its veracity.
Verification
DUBAWA investigated the claim, accompanied by a 3-minute 13-second video, made on ghanaweb.com. The footage, sourced from the 8th Ghana CEOs Summit held in Accra on May 28, 2024, was reviewed to verify if Mr Mahama made the alleged statement.
For clarity, here is what Mr Mahama said about cedi depreciation, as found between 00:34 and 1:08 of the video on ghanaweb.com.
“The convergence of economic diversification and artificial intelligence presents us with a unique opportunity to drive sustainable growth and prosperity for our dear country, Ghana. The priority will be stabilising the economy and restoring a stable currency. We will launch an urgent economy recovery and physical consolidation plan following a national economic dialogue which we intend to hold within the 100 days of assumption of office.”
After thoroughly examining the video, DUBAWA found that Mr Mahama did not state he would stabilise the cedi within 100 days of taking office. Instead, he mentioned that he would launch an economic recovery and fiscal consolidation plan within his first 100 days to find solutions to stabilise the cedi.
DUBAWA also reviewed the entire programme, streamed live on Joy News’ YouTube page, and found that Mr Mahama never made such a comment.
A statement released on Wednesday, May 29, and published on X, signed by Joyce Bawah Mogtari, Special Aide and Spokesperson, refuted these reports. She indicated that “Mr Mahama, with a deep understanding of the country’s economic challenges today, did not promise to stabilise the Ghana Cedi within 100 days. Instead, he laid out a comprehensive plan in his remarks at the 8th Ghana CEO Summit to address the challenges, demonstrating his grasp of the situation”
Conclusion
The claims from various news reports are false. DUBAWA’s investigation reveals that Mr Mahama did not promise to stabilise the cedi within 100 days in office. Instead, he said that he would launch an urgent economic and fiscal consolidation plan within his first 100 days in office to address cedi depreciation.
