Dr. John Ossae Kwapong, a senior fellow at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), has provided a comprehensive analysis that address key aspects of the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s address delivered on Wednesday, February 7 2024 at the University of Professional Studies, Accra.
Key among the issues, the revered researcher and Democracy fellow at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) assessed included partisanship, acknowledgment of economic challenges, the explanation of past promises, and concerns about over-promising.
“I have read the speech, all seventy-three pages. In my op-ed piece this past Tuesday titled Dr. Bawumia’s Upcoming Speech, I had four key expectations – a) acknowledging the pinch points Ghanaians feel under this administration
“b) reconciling the 2016 economic management arguments for an Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government with current economic realities; c) avoiding extreme partisanship; and d) being measured in campaign promises. How well did the Vice-President address these expectations?”
Dr John Ossae-Kwapong
Dr. Kwapong began his assessment by commending the Vice President for not engaging in extreme partisan politics unlike his famous ‘rhetoric’ from the 2008 campaign to the 2016 elections.
According to Dr Kwapong, in the context of the 2016 elections, the primary audience for the Vice President appeared to be New Patriotic Party partisans supporters and further argued that unlike those previous speeches the recent speech by the Vice President was crafted to appeal to Ghanaians across party lines.
“One could argue that the messages resonated with enough people beyond the party base, resulting in the defeat of former President Mahama. As a political observer, I was intrigued by the sharpening of his partisan rhetoric when I compared the 2008 Dr. Bawumia to the 2016 Dr. Bawumia”.
Dr John Ossae-Kwapong
Dr John Ossae-Kwapong further indicated that the ultimate test of the effectiveness of the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s speech will be decided in the upcoming elections.
Commenting on the country’s economic challenges, Dr John Ossae-Kwapong commended the Vice President and the New Patriotic Party’s flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s recognition of the economic difficulties facing Ghanaians, including increased food prices, exchange rate depreciation, rising fuel prices, transportation fare hikes, and the impact of debt restructuring.
Dr. Kwapong stressed the importance of the Vice President acknowledging such realities, considering them a significant aspect of the electorate’s concerns that cannot be overlooked, especially in the context of the 2016 “Ghanaians are suffering” campaign stump speech.
Furthermore, the Democracy fellow at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development expressed deep concerns about the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s perceived lack of a direct and detailed response to the question of “what happened” concerning the forceful arguments and assertions he made in 2016.
Dr Kwapong noted that while the Vice President’s speech attributed the country’s economic challenges to global events, such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian-Ukraine War, the Vice President failed to give full explanation of the shortcoming of the current government.
According to Dr Kwapong, the need for a more direct and robust response to the above mentioned question remains a significant aspect for the Ghanaian voters seeking accountability and transparency from political leaders ahead of the 2024 general elections.
“I do not dispute the disruptive nature of these two events on the global economy and the devastating effects they had on countries. I am just not sure it explains fully the Ghanaian reality. I believe that argument has lost some of the force it may have wielded two or three years ago”.
Dr John Ossae-Kwapong
Moreover, Dr. John Ossae-Kwapong highlighted the common feature of political campaigns promises and expressed deep concerns over the Vice President tendency of ‘over-promising’ during his address at the University of Professional Studies, Accra.
He thus emphasized the need for the Vice President to be measurable in the quantity of promises made to the Ghanaian people particularly due to the country’s current economic situation.
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