The presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has noted that the establishment of a car assembly plant in Ghana under the Akufo-Addo administration threatens the local automotive industry.

He said this development is unacceptable.

Automotive giants Volkswagen (VW) launched their first batch of cars assembled in Ghana following a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Government of Ghana and Volkswagen in 2018 to establish a vehicle assembly plant in the country.

Toyota Tsusho Corporation, the largest car manufacturer in the world by volume also signed a deal with the Ghanaian government allowing it to establish an assembly plant in the country.

Touching on this development, Mr Mahama said while announcing a return to the campaign trail on Friday, November 20 that “it is unacceptable that the employment of hundreds of thousands of people in the local automotive industry is threatened simply because government is encouraging the establishment of a car assembly plant which will not employ more than one hundred people.”

“Government can become the major source of business for the car assembly plant while we protect the jobs of Ghanaians in the used car value chain.”