Former President John Mahama has criticised Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for not addressing the country’s pressing economic challenges, instead of offering digitisation as a solution to every issue.

Mr Mahama, who is the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), refrained from naming Bawumia directly, referring to him as "Abrantie" (young man) during his remarks.

According to Mr Mahama, Vice President Bawumia has failed to resolve critical economic issues, particularly the exchange rate crisis, which has severely impacted many local businesses.

He argued that digitisation alone cannot solve the deeper economic problems the country faces.

The former president also pointed out that the performance of the cedi against the U.S. dollar was much better when he left office in January 2017, compared to the current situation nearly eight years later.

He emphasised that the exchange rate is a significant factor crippling businesses, and more concrete economic strategies are needed.

“President Akufo-Addo told us he was bringing someone from Bank of Ghana to be his vice-president. The reason, the president said, was because he was an economic specialist who would put measures in place to bring us economic relief."

“When I was handing over to them, the cedi was trading at GHȼ4 to a dollar. When Abrantie Bank of Ghana came, the cedi is now trading at GHȼ16 to a dollar,” he said of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia who served for a period as Deputy Governor of the Central Bank before being nominated as running mate to then Candidate Nana Akufo-Addo."

“This gentleman who came has stopped talking about the economy. When he is asked about anything on the economy, he responds ‘digitalization’. When he is asked about the cedi depreciation he answers ‘digital’. When he is asked about what he will do about the sky-high prices of goods and services, he says ‘digital’."