Development economist, Dr Michael Ayamba, has revealed that the election of Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, as the flagbearer for the New Patriotic Party is simply a front for President Akufo-Addo’s third term.

According to him, one critical aspect of the NPP has to do with its “powers”. By this, he explained that the NPP has naturally been a duopoly between Busia and Dankwa factions of the party even though it’s not explicitly stated.

Dr Ayamba revealed that this is an unwritten convention that more or less supersedes their constitution.

“Many people know that Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is Akufo-Addo’s third term and that the powers that he brought are firmly rooted in the circles and structures that brought President Akufo-Addo to power and that has anchored him in government so far.
“So, he is more or less another Dankwa faction of the party going in the name of the Dombo faction of the NPP, which is the weakest and probably most lame structure in the party. So, if you look at these things going forward, you have to get worried…”
Dr Michael Ayamba

Justifying his stance, Dr Ayamba recounted that the 2007 election for the flagbearer position of the party showed that Alan Kyerematen who was competing against President Akufo-Addo then was “very strong and popular” and many people got his message. However, he explained that the internal structures of the NPP ensured that candidate Akufo-Addo emerged winner.

“Even in the buildup to this election, you heard slogans like ‘aduru ni su’ and all that, and that was driven by the internal convention of the NPP that it’s duopoly between Busia and Dankwa tradition. As for the Dombo that they’re now trying to ascribe to Dr Bawumia, which is actually not the case, it’s just a side dish.
“So, the claims of general secretary Justin Koduah that the NPP is not an Ashanti party is probably a misunderstanding of the protest of the Busia faction…”
Dr Michael Ayamba

Furthermore, Dr Ayamba expressed that for the party to consolidate votes from the electorates following the passable victory by Dr Bawumia, there is the need to look at some critical factors which has to do with the attributes of the new flagbearer. He revealed that the Vice President in the first place comes across as someone who has lost credibility in terms of his ability to transform his speech to action.

Additionally, he noted that the most important thing the NPP must focus on is the legitimacy of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia going forward. He underscored that the new flagbearer is now facing headwinds in terms of projecting himself.

“I think that the Vice President as it stands now lacks the legitimacy to lead. A 40% of your own party thinks that you do not deserve to be President of this country and a presidential candidate. Taking that to the wider election is only going to spell disaster.
“I’m in Northern Ghana and I can tell you that the news of his election is already stale and there’s no excitement behind the election, and when you’re speaking to people in the NPP, there’s this inner dissatisfaction and apprehension with their choice.”
Dr Michael Ayamba

Choreographed win for Bawumia in flagbearer election

Moreover, Dr Ayamba described the victory and win of Dr Bawumia as more or less a “state-choreographed elections”. By this, he indicated that everything was done to make sure that Vice President emerged the eventual winner.

“There was certain fear that he wasn’t going to emerge… Some people had to do something to ensure that what the people wanted to project doesn’t come to pass. So, that is the problem we are confronted with here; 40% is no small number, it now means that the state and election machinery that was immersed in the Bawumia campaign has to re-sell him, rebrand and repackage him to Ghanaians. Given the baggage on Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, he is not going to excite anybody.”
Dr Michael Ayamba

Regarding performance of Dr Bawumia, Dr Ayamba stated that it plays a central role in the outplay of the entire election process. He highlighted that people tend to avoid conversation about it, but the performance of the NPP whose economic management team has been led by Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is “disappointing”.

“He is on record to have said that currencies depreciate when fundamentals are weak and that you cannot borrow in this manner. That manner he was referring to was GHC122 billion when he inherited from John Dramani Mahama, he took it all the way to GHC575 billion… That record is not something you can sell…”
Dr Michael Ayamba