"60:40 is your new name" — Afenyo-Markin launches fierce attack on Mahama gov't

Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has launched a blistering assault on the Mahama-led government, accusing it of presiding over what he described as a corrupt and deceptive “60:40 regime” — a label he said now defines the administration’s mismanagement and backroom dealings.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament during the concluding debate on the 2025 Mid-Year Budget Review, Mr. Afenyo-Markin ridiculed the government’s economic stewardship, describing the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration as a cabal driven by rent-seeking and “institutionalised corruption.”

“Mr. Speaker, 60:40 is your new name. That's what you're called on the streets of Accra. 'Give me 60, take 40' – that's the economy you're running,” he charged, as members looked on.

He cited the Attorney General’s decision to discontinue prosecution in the high-profile case involving former Finance Minister Dr. Kwabena Duffuor and seven others — a move he said undermines the justice system and signals selective prosecution. The case, The Republic v. Kwabena Duffuor & 7 Others (CR/0248/2020), was a key part of the 2018 financial sector clean-up initiated under the previous NPP administration.

Referring to a press release from the Deputy Attorney-General, Afenyo-Markin revealed that the NDC government had introduced a “60% recovery benchmark” as a basis for dropping charges — a policy he claimed opens the door to backroom bargaining and political interference in anti-corruption efforts.

“This is no longer a matter of incompetence. It is institutionalised rent-seeking. And the 60:40 formula has become the symbol of the economic order—where corruption is baked into the very cost of doing business,” he argued.

The Minority Leader also took aim at the Ghana Gold Board, alleging that the institution had become a front for illegal mining, rather than a regulator.

“Today, the Gold Board is no longer about regulation. It is encouraging galamsey under the guise of buying gold,” he said, accusing the government of enabling environmental destruction and profiting from it.

In a scathing analysis of the Mid-Year Budget, Afenyo-Markin accused the government of economic dishonesty, saying it had falsely claimed credit for stability gains achieved by the NPP administration through painful fiscal reforms.

“The Finance Minister claims our debt-to-GDP ratio has dropped, but the reality is that no significant portion of our debt has been repaid. The so-called improvement is just statistical cosmetics, made possible by debt restructuring and currency gains the NPP administration put in motion,” he stated.

On the issue of youth unemployment, he criticised the GH¢0.5 billion budgeted for job creation as grossly inadequate.

“There is a direct link between joblessness and the rise in insecurity and galamsey. When you leave young people with no hope, they turn to illegality for survival. That is the danger of this 60:40 economy,” he warned.

He lamented the abandonment of legacy programmes such as Agenda 111 and Planting for Food and Jobs, saying that communities have been left to suffer without access to basic healthcare and food security.

Citing over 1,500 road accident deaths this year, Afenyo-Markin blamed the government’s failure to pay contractors for the deteriorating road network.

“Every pothole is a death trap. Every accident bears this government's fingerprints,” he declared.

In a final rebuke, the Minority Leader accused the Mahama administration of political hypocrisy, saying it had vilified the NPP for pandemic-related spending while now benefiting from the very reforms the previous government implemented.

“We took the heat for fixing the mess. You're now enjoying the benefits and taking credit. But the people see through the deception. You are the true apostles of hypocrisy, and the 60:40 label is your legacy,” he concluded.

Afenyo-Markin pledged that the Minority will continue to shine a light on what he described as “a grand economic heist disguised as governance,” vowing to hold the government accountable in the name of transparency, justice, and true development.