15 years, after he was plucked from the Bank of Ghana (BoG) and presented to Ghanaians by Nana Akufo-Addo, as the new face for the then ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP); a combination of a hard-line politician and technocrat, Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia’s sacrifices, are still unappreciated in certain quarters of the party.
Demonstrating how some are yet to accept Dr Bawumia in the NPP, is Dr Richard Amoako Baah, described as a political scientist at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and a stalwart of the NPP.
He has branded the Vice-President, as an alien to the governing party, and asked him to step aside in the flag bearer race ahead of the 2024 polls, and give way to the Trade and Industry Minister, Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen.
Aside from Dr Bawumia, all the party folks vying for the flagbearer, are all Akans.
They include, Mr Kyerematen, Dr Afriyie Akoto, the Food and Agriculture Minister, the MP for Essikado Ketan, Joe Ghartey, and Boakye Agyarko, onetime Minister of Energy.
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The Vice-President, has been projected to win NPP flagbearership race in the 2024 election ahead of his main challenger Mr Kyerematen, but Dr Amoako-Baah, insists “I want Bawumia to step aside because of the rancour between him and Alan’s camp”, the political science lecturer said, insisting: “Bawumia should step aside”.
In his view, it is the “strategic” thing to do, adding “this is what political parties do and in this case, this is what the NPP should do”.
According to him, however, “no one is in charge of the party and those who are in charge are part of the problem. No one is forcing him but it’s strategic”.
“The goals of the party are not the same as the goal of the candidate vying to capture power,” Dr Amoako Baah added.
To him: “Bawumia is younger than the rest; truthfully, he is not a true blood NPP member; he is an outsider”.
“Fine, he is done well; he has gone three times with Nana. Initially, people will push him to go. He was with Nana one, two and the third time they won. Now, he wants another four years; that’s 16 years and after that, I am sure he will run again. Is he the only person in the party? That’s the question.”
Dr Amoako Baah, is of the conviction that the NPP, would lose if elections were held today, “because many people are saying that Nana Addo is not doing well and if Nana Addo is not doing well, Bawumia is not doing well.”
“NPP does not have the chance of winning the next election, if things should go the way they are going now.
Bawumia is young, let the others go and unite the party. Four years later, you can be in charge,” Dr Amoako Baah, told Accra-based Starr FM.
