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Vice President Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia has described as "amusing", calls by some leading activists in the opposition party asking the government to pay arrears to road contractors.

Dr Bawumia told the "latter day saints" that the Akufo-Addo government has remitted half of the arrears incurred under the Mahama administration.

In July last year, National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for Wassa East, Hon Isaac Agyei Mensah, who is also a former Deputy Minister for Roads and Highways in the erstwhile Mahama-led government, said the current administration has no excuse not to pay contractors and also improve road infrastructure in the country.

Quite recently at the NDC's 5th Unity Walk, former President John Mahama charged the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) to pay debts owed government contractors.

“During the 2016 campaign, the NPP promised to pay monies owed contractors within its first 100 days after taking office. Till now the contractors have still not been paid,” Mr Mahama observed in an address to party supporters at Techiman in the Brong Ahafo region on Saturday, January 6.

But delivering an address at the opening of the 2018 New Year School at Legon, Dr. Bawumia noted that in just less than two years of the new government, the current administration has paid off significant arrears to tune of GH¢1.45 billion.

He recounted that the government inherited validated arrears for Statutory Funds, Capex, Compensation and Goods and Services, that were accumulated by the NDC government which amounted to GH¢3.1 billion.

Speaking to the gathering at the 69th Annual New Year School and Conference under the theme: “Job Creation for Accelerated National Development: The Role of the Private Sector”, the Veep stated that "in fact, in just one year we have paid almost half of the arrears accumulated by the NDC government while staying current on existing obligations".