The Minority in Parliament has launched a scathing critique of President John Dramani Mahama’s 120-day performance report, accusing the government of abandoning its reformist agenda and betraying public trust on key national issues, particularly the fight against illegal mining.
At a press conference held on Thursday, May 8, 2025, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin described the President’s recent national address as an exercise in self-praise that lacked substance and failed to reflect the everyday realities of ordinary Ghanaians. He contended that Mahama’s much-celebrated social contract had fallen flat.
“This is not just a speech; it is a call to remembrance and resistance,” Afenyo-Markin said. “It is a forensic audit of the presidency that campaigned with the urgency of a reformer but now governs with the indifference of a ruler long exhausted by ideas.”
According to the Minority Leader, the early promise of Mahama’s administration is already faltering, with the President slipping into what he termed “lame duck days.” He accused the government of trading reform for political convenience and of reneging on its commitment to real change.
“Now the 120 days are over, the promises have collapsed, the excuses have run dry, the reckoning must begin,” he declared. “Let it be said plainly to every Ghanaian — you were not given a reset; you were sold a recycled failure.”
Afenyo-Markin also delivered a pointed rebuke of the government’s handling of the illegal mining crisis. He accused the Mahama administration of turning its back on bold campaign promises to confront galamsey with urgency, including the declaration of a state of emergency.
“The government’s inaction on illegal mining is not just disappointing—it is a betrayal,” he said. “While in opposition, the NDC loudly declared that they would impose a state of emergency to confront galamsey. But 120 days into office, that urgency has vanished.”
He lamented the ongoing environmental destruction in mining communities, accusing the government of empty rhetoric while Ghana’s rivers, forests, and farmlands continue to suffer. “The promised state of emergency has vanished, replaced by silence and inaction, while the sector minister shares crocodile tears on national television,” he added.
