A prominent member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Communications Team, Lawyer Beatrice Annan has launched scathing criticism against the current government, particularly Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia over what she labelled as the latter’s perceived inconsistent and unsubstantiated claims regarding job creation in the country.
The opposition party’s communicator strongly accused the ruling New Patriotic Party administration of deceit and incompetence, shedding light on a contentious issue of unemployment that she noted has fueled public disappointment in the ruling government.
At the heart of Lawyer Annan’s critique lies the contentious issue of job creation statistics touted by the ruling government.
She vehemently dismissed Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s assertion of the current administration creating 2.1 million jobs, describing it as a “figment of his own imagination”.
Drawing attention to a series of conflicting figures presented by government officials over time, Lawyer Beatrice Annan highlighted the stark variance in job creation numbers, raising pertinent questions about their reliability and transparency.
Furthermore, Lawyer Beatrice Annan pointed to past statements made by Employment Minister Ignatius Baffour Awuah, who she mentioned in September 2020 asserted that the New Patriotic Party administration had created 5.3 million jobs, only to revise the figure to 3 million jobs in February 2021.
These discrepancies, according to Lawyer Beatrice Annan, underscored a pattern of inconsistency on the part of the governing New Patriotic Party administration.
She challenged the New Patriotic Party administration, particularly the Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to clarify which set of figures Ghanaians should believe, emphasizing the need for accountability and honesty in public discourse.
“HOW COME THE 5.3 MILLION JOBS CREATED IN 2020 DROPPED TO 2.1 MILLION IN 2024? The job numbers keep changing and falling at every turn, depending on who is speaking. It is obvious that these figures are mere conjectures and not borne out by the facts”
Lawyer Beatrice Annan
Disparity Between Job Creation and Unemployment Rate
Moreover, the National Democratic Congress National Communication Team Member expressed deep concern over what she describes as the alarming disparity between the government’s purported job creation achievements and the persistent rise in unemployment rates in the country.
She argued that despite the government perceived implementation of several flagship initiatives such as the Nation Builders Corps (NABCO) and YouthStart, the unemployment rate in the country has soared from 8.4% in 2016 to a staggering 14%, exacerbating economic hardship and social instability.
Citing data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey by the Ghana Statistics Service and the National Population and Housing Census, Lawyer Beatrice Annan pointed out that the number of unemployed individuals in the country remained alarmingly high, casting doubt on the government’s claims of significant job creation.
Lawyer Beatrice Annan further emphasized that the juxtaposition of the perceived inflated job creation figures by the ruling government with the grim reality of escalating unemployment in the country paints a damning picture of the government’s performance.
She posited that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s alleged persistent denial of the prevailing challenges facing young people in the country portray a dangerous disconnect from reality, posing a grave threat to the country’s prospects.
Lawyer Beatrice Annan concluded her remarks by urging the ruling government to confront the harsh realities of the present rather than resorting to deceptive rhetoric.
She also underscored the urgent need for the ruling government to make a concerted effort to address the root causes of unemployment and socioeconomic inequality in the country.
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