The former general secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Ohene Ntow, has criticized Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for comparing himself to a driver’s mate in the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government. Bawumia had said that he was like a driver’s mate who assists the driver, and that he should be made president – the driver – so he can implement his own vision.
Ohene Ntow, who is the spokesperson of the leader of the Movement for Change, Alan Kyerematen, said that Bawumia’s comments were pathetic and insulting to the people of Ghana. He said that Bawumia was undermining the role and importance of the vice president, as well as the 1992 constitution, which gives the vice president the same mandate as the president.
“Once a candidate is voted as president, his running mate is deemed to have been voted. And two, if the president is indisposed today or he’s out of the jurisdiction today, it is the vice president who occupies his shoes until he returns to post,” Ohene Ntow said in an interview on GHOne TV on February 20, 2024.
“So, if Bawumia was in that position and is now telling Ghanaians that that position is all useless, you can’t do anything with the position of a vice president. I think it is even an insult to the constitution of Ghana,” he added.
Ohene Ntow also said that Bawumia’s remarks were the worst he had heard from a presidential contender. “That is why I’m saying that statement is the most pathetic statement I ever heard from anyone aspiring to become president of Ghana,” he said.
Ohene Ntow is not the only one who has expressed displeasure with Bawumia’s analogy. Some members of the NPP, as well as the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), have also questioned Bawumia’s logic and loyalty to the president. They have accused him of being impatient and disrespectful to the president, who has not yet declared his intention to run for a third term in 2024.
Bawumia, however, has defended his analogy, saying that he was only trying to explain his role and contribution to the government. He said that he was not undermining the president, but rather showing his readiness and capability to take over from him. He said that he had a vision for Ghana that was based on digital transformation, economic growth, and social inclusion.
Bawumia is widely seen as the frontrunner for the NPP’s presidential nomination in 2024, but he faces a stiff challenge from Kyerematen, who is also a former trade minister and a popular figure within the party. The NPP is expected to hold its national delegates’ conference in June 2024, where it will elect its flagbearer for the 2024 general elections.
The 2024 elections are expected to be highly competitive and decisive, as the NPP and the NDC are both seeking to break the cycle of two-term governments in Ghana’s Fourth Republic. The NDC has not yet announced its presidential candidate, but many analysts believe that former president John Mahama, who lost to Akufo-Addo in 2016 and 2020, will run again.
As Ghana prepares for another crucial election, many citizens are hoping that the candidates will focus on the issues that matter to them, such as health, education, security, and corruption. They are also hoping that the candidates will respect the constitution and the democratic process, and avoid divisive and inflammatory rhetoric that could undermine the peace and stability of the country.
Source: GhanaWeb.com
