Former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has dismissed claims by President John Dramani Mahama that the Akufo-Addo administration engaged in criminal mismanagement of the economy.

According to Dr Amin Adam, such assertions are unfounded and do not reflect the true state of the economy when the previous government left office.

Speaking on Channel One TV on Monday, 17 March, he contended that the fundamentals of the economy were strong at the time of transition.

He accused the new administration of deliberately painting a bleak picture to justify its economic policy decisions.

“The new government, right from the beginning, tried to paint a certain picture of the economy they inherited. I think that they just wanted to give excuses by saying that the economy was bad, it was criminally mismanaged, the economy was in crisis,” he remarked.

Dr Amin Adam further alleged that this portrayal was a strategic move to garner public support for difficult policy measures.

He argued that by emphasising a so-called economic crisis, the new government sought to create an atmosphere in which Ghanaians would be more willing to endure stringent policies.

“So that the goodwill that they have, they can be able to push certain policies no matter how bitter those policies are. And people will understand because they inherited a bad situation, so let’s bear with them.

"So that was the narrative they created. Everything shows that the economy we handed over to them was strong,” he stressed.