Bawumia must take responsibility for the mess created by government or own none of the achievements – Dr Sarpong
A research fellow at the Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has stated that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia cannot claim credit for some of this government's achievements without acknowledging responsibility for its failures.
Comparing the Vice President's role to that of a spare driver of a commercial vehicle as outlined in the constitution, Dr Kwame Asiedu Sarpong explained that they assume control of the vehicle in the absence of the main driver, and thus, both share in the profits and losses.
Speaking on Newsfile, Dr. Sarpong noted that while Dr. Bawumia rightfully takes credit for many accomplishments, he cannot evade accountability for the negative aspects, nor can President Akufo-Addo be solely blamed for the failures.
“If you listen to the Vice President (in his speech), he takes credit for the good things that have happened under this government and rightly so. So he takes credit for digitalization, rightly so, and he takes credit for the early stabilization of the cedi, rightly so. So if he's taking credit for the positives of this government, why is he walking away from the negatives?”
“What happens to collective responsibility? So I can see what the NPP is trying to do by distancing himself from the negative of this current government. But I don't see how a spare driver can take credit for the profitability of the commercial vehicle but say the losses are only down to the driver. I just cannot bring myself to accept,” he noted.
Dr. Sarpong emphasised that “so it is one or the other, either the Vice President distances himself from everything that this government has achieved or failed at, or he takes responsibility for the successes and stands with the failures.”
He was responding to lawyer Kofi Bentil’s call for a “fair hearing” and support for Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s bid for the presidency.
In a Facebook post, Mr Bentil stressed that Dr Bawumia, never having been president before, deserves a chance similar to the one given to John Mahama in 2012.
He highlighted that the Vice President's position is advisory and thus, Dr. Bawumia is “totally powerless” and unable to make significant decisions even when the President leaves him in charge.
Mr Bentil insisted that if given a fair and objective hearing, the Vice President would outperform former President Mahama.
However, Dr Sarpong argued that Dr Bawumia had the opportunity to express his opinions at the time of disagreement with certain government policies, including the e-levy, instead of advocating for its abolition now if elected.
“We all saw the fighting in Parliament and people being brought in ambulances to come and vote for the e-levy. We were told that e-levy was the solution to every problem that we had. If the vice president felt very, very strongly about it, which the impression I have is that he did, he should have spoken out then.”
“He should have put his alternative opinion out. We heard ministers in the cabinet who said that the Vice President agreed with the e-levy. Now we heard some of those ministers, including Kojo Oppong Nkrumah trying to explain that position to say he had a different opinion. But he stayed so that if we get a GHS100 exemption xyz, I don't buy that. I don't buy that.”
Dr. Sarpong concluded that if Dr. Bawumia seeks credit, he must also accept responsibility for the government’s failures, stating that “he cannot have it both ways.”
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