Former Sekondi Member of Parliament (MP) and New Patriotic Party (NPP) figure Andrew Egyapa Mercer has challenged the framing of the Mahama administration’s Big Push infrastructure programme, arguing that public funds used to pay contractors belong to the Government of Ghana and not to any political party.
Speaking on TV3’s Key Points on Saturday, Mercer invoked the principle of governance as a continuum, stating that the money flowing to contractors under the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government is the same state revenue collected and managed across administrations. “What you are using to pay contractors is Government of Ghana money,” he said, pushing back against what he described as attempts to assign exclusive political credit for infrastructure spending.
His remarks come amid a wider political battle over the Big Push programme, the Mahama administration’s flagship road and infrastructure initiative backed by a GH¢30.8 billion allocation in the 2026 national budget. The programme has faced sustained scrutiny in Parliament over procurement practices, after an investigative report revealed that a significant share of contracts were awarded through sole sourcing. Roads and Highways Minister Kwame Governs Agbodza has defended the programme, maintaining that all contracts comply with the Public Procurement Act and that payments are tied strictly to verified work completed on site.
Mercer has previously acknowledged genuine achievements under the current administration, including the continuation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme and the strengthening of the Gold Board, while insisting that credit must be properly attributed across the political divide. “Governance is a continuum, and we should give credit where credit is due,” he said in an earlier appearance on Joy News’ Newsfile. On Saturday, however, he made clear that the same logic applies in reverse, warning against the use of public expenditure as a political trophy when the underlying resources are drawn from consolidated state funds built across successive governments.
The comments add a new dimension to the ongoing Big Push debate, shifting the conversation from procurement methods and delivery timelines to the question of political ownership over public money.
