Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) General Secretary, Ing. Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, has expressed the view that President John Dramani Mahama’s 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA) represented a missed opportunity to alter Ghana’s economic trajectory.
According to Ing. Agyepong, rather than presenting a bold roadmap for economic recovery, the address adopted a defensive and partisan tone that prioritised self-congratulation over the growing concerns of the Ghanaian populace.
The SONA fell short in addressing the pressing issues affecting cocoa farmers, the private sector, and ordinary citizens grappling with escalating living costs, he noted.
Ing. Agyepong opined that the most troubling aspect was the justification for reducing cocoa producer prices as a means to avoid an IMF bail-out.
While this decision may appease fiscal experts, it places an undue burden on farmers already struggling with ageing plantations, volatile global markets, and increasing input costs.
He argued that expecting cocoa farmers to absorb the shocks of macroeconomic mismanagement betrays the very foundation of the economy. If agriculture is indeed the backbone of the economy, policy decisions must treat farmers as partners in growth, not mere buffers for fiscal failures.
Ing. Agyepong raised concerns about increased taxation at a time when the economy needs private capital for infrastructure development and manufacturing.
Taxation itself is not the issue, he emphasised; rather, it is the lack of expenditure discipline that poses the problem.
He said by increasing tax pressure without broadening the tax base through economic growth, the president risks undermining the confidence necessary for long-term expansion.
Regarding the galamsey crisis, Ing. Agyepong described the president’s pledges as hollow and familiar.
He stressed the need for concrete action, including technological surveillance and the prosecution of high-level enablers, rather than mere rhetoric.
He was emphatic that without institutional reforms to insulate these efforts from political interference, these promises will remain futile.
A State of the Nation Address should be a moment of national reflection and levelling, not a partisan rally, he added.
Ghana requires leadership that balances fiscal discipline with compassion for workers and a resolute stance against environmental degradation.
In Ing. Agyepong’s view, President Mahama’s address fell short of this standard, highlighting the need for substantive leadership beyond mere presentation.
Read his opinion below.
COCOA FARMERS, MASSES and INVESTORS are Left Behind in Mahama’s February 2026 SONA.
Over the past week, President John Dramani Mahama had a constitutional opportunity in his 2026 State of the Nation Address to inspire confidence, re-engineer the national conversation and articulate a bold roadmap for Ghana’s economic recovery and growth. Instead, Mahama’s address felt more defensive than visionary. It was the usual speech, so heavy on partisan self-congratulation and light on transformative direction.
A State of the Nation address must rise above political applause lines. It must speak to our national realities, like the anxieties of our hard-working cocoa farmers; the difficult calculations of investors; and the quiet frustrations of ordinary citizens on the ever-rising electricity cost, among others. On that test, this address fell far short.
No mention of land reform and imposing a maintenance culture
Perhaps the most unsettling aspect of the address was the suggestion that reducing cocoa producer prices was necessary to avoid returning to an IMF programme. That argument may satisfy fiscal technocrats, but it does little to comfort the cocoa farmer whose livelihood already hangs in delicate balance.
It is trite that cocoa farmers operate within a narrow margin of survival, contending with rising input costs, ageing farms, uncertain climate and volatile global prices. Asking our long-suffering cocoa farmers to carry a nation’s burden without a clearly defined long-term productivity strategy reflects a troubling imbalance in national priorities. Fiscal discipline cannot become synonymous with shifting the burden onto those least able to bear it. What good then do farmers derive from state control if they must bear the brunt of bad times?
If agriculture is truly the backbone of the economy, then policy must treat farmers as partners in growth, not as shock absorbers for macroeconomic adjustment.
Equally concerning was the promise of increased taxation at a time when Ghana desperately needs more private capital in infrastructure, manufacturing and technology.
Indeed, taxation is not inherently problematic; irresponsibility is, in our case. Raising taxes without a parallel demonstration of expenditure discipline, regulatory certainty and institutional reform risks dampening investor confidence. Capital flows where policy is predictable and governance is credible. Without those assurances, higher taxes may yield short-term revenue but long-term stagnation.
Investment thrives on clarity, and hence President Mahama, in the last State of the Nation’s Address, missed a golden opportunity to indicate a comprehensive strategy for broadening the tax base through growth, rather than deepening it through pressure.
More disappointing still was the absence of a serious assault on the structural weaknesses that continue to undermine Ghana’s democratic and economic architecture.
Indiscipline and corruption within public institutions, cronyism in appointments, selective enforcement of laws, and an uneven application of justice erode public trust. Investors do not merely examine tax rates; they assess the strength of institutions and the predictability of the rule of law. Citizens do not merely listen to government PR spewing out growth statistics; they evaluate fairness. Hence, a credible reform agenda must confront these issues directly. Silence, however polished, does not amount to reform.
On illegal mining, commonly known as ‘galamsey’, the pledges sounded familiar and hollow. Ghana has heard successive administrations promise decisive crackdowns while rivers turn poisonous and farmlands disappear.
This crisis we behold demands more than rhetoric. It requires institutional insulation from political interference, transparent enforcement mechanisms, technological surveillance, and the political courage to confront financiers and enablers at the highest levels.
Without a concrete framework, repeated assurances risk reinforcing public scepticism rather than restoring confidence.
A State of the Nation address should be distinct from a campaign rally. It is a constitutional moment, a platform to level with citizens about challenges and to articulate a bold, measurable path forward. Ghana needs leadership that is compassionate toward farmers through disciplined fiscal management that is attractive to investors, resolute against environmental destruction, and uncompromising in strengthening institutions.
It is unfortunate President Mahama’s 2026 address did not rise to that standard. And in moments of economic and environmental fragility, presentational leadership is not enough.
Ghanaians deserve more than mere words. We need to see a credible roadmap anchored in reform, fairness and forward thinking.
Ing Kwabena Agyei Agyepong,
1st March 2026.
6 Anang Loop, East Legon, Accra
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
