The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has strongly criticized President John Mahama’s 120-day social contract, dismissing it as an unfulfilled promise marred by ongoing power outages and deepening economic struggles for ordinary Ghanaians.
Their criticism followed President Mahama’s national address, in which he claimed significant progress on the 25 major pledges outlined in his social contract, a commitment he made to fulfil within the first four months of his presidency.
Giving detail of the 24-hour economy initiative as a cornerstone of his agenda, the President announced that Cabinet has approved key amendments to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act and the Labour Act. These changes are intended to facilitate round-the-clock operations across sectors.
“The programme rollout is underway,” Mahama said. “The 24-hour Secretariat is working with the Development Bank of Ghana and the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund to activate financing pillars for this initiative. Cabinet has also approved necessary legislative amendments to support 24-hour business operations.”
In addition, President Mahama reported that the Finance Minister has launched an inquiry into the collapse of local banks and financial institutions. He also revealed that Deloitte & Touche is conducting an independent audit of the controversial National Cathedral project, with findings expected by the end of May.
“Our fight against corruption is ongoing,” he said. “The Minister for Health is reviewing the Auditor General’s report on COVID-19 spending, and appropriate action will follow. Investigations into the Sputnik V vaccine procurement and the PDS scandal are also in progress.”
On the issue of security, the President outlined reforms in recruitment processes. A new biometric system will screen applicants against national criminal and intelligence databases, automatically disqualifying those with links to political vigilante groups. The Ghana Armed Forces has also launched a board of inquiry to review and reform its recruitment procedures.
Despite these updates, the NPP dismissed the President’s address as out of touch with the realities faced by citizens.
At a press conference held on Thursday, May 8, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin criticized the address as a self-congratulatory exercise.
“Yesterday, the President marked his own script, he set the questions, gave the answers, and graded himself,” Afenyo-Markin said.
He accused Mahama of using the social contract as a political gimmick. “It was a bait-and-switch, a flashy list of promises designed for show, not substance,” he argued.
Afenyo-Markin highlighted several unfulfilled promises, including the ban on illegal mining, the removal of the COVID-19 levy, reduction of import duties, mass employment programmes, and the rollout of the “1-3-3” model for the 24-hour economy.
“The hardships are undeniable. Power cuts persist, prices keep rising, and Ghanaians are struggling daily. No speech, no matter how polished, can hide that,” he concluded.
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