Dr. Bawumia's average electoral performance cannot match president Mahama’s first- class performance

Finally, the NPP Delegates have spoken in their presidential primaries last week

Saturday, November 4, 2023, to endorse Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as the presidential

candidate of the NPP come the 2024 general elections.

There was no ‘showdown’ incidence observed in the just-ended NPP Presidential primaries contrary to threats from the defeated Candidate, Kennedy Agyapong who gave Dr. Bawumia a good run for his money with almost 40% of the valid votes cast.

What this means is that if Alan John Kojo Kyerematen was still in the NPP presidential race, devoid of brutalities and intimidations from the perceived camp of the establishment Candidate, he would have caused a run-off or could possibly take the victory from Dr. Bawumia. Thus, Alan Kyerematen’s withdrawal was highly advantageous to Dr. Bawumia, the winner.

Although vice president Dr. Bawumia had to make live phone calls to some selected delegates for votes before the day of the NPP presidential primaries, he was only able to garner an average electoral performance of 61.47% of the total valid votes cast against former President John Dramani Mahama who had an overwhelming endorsement of 98.93% from the NDC Delegates.

Aside from the first-class electoral performance of former President Mahama, he also has a superior track record of leadership and delivery on the economic and developmental fronts to that of the overhyped Vice President, Dr. Bawumia.

As expected, Dr. Bawumia has the most arduous task of explaining to Ghanaians why he deserves their votes and why they should accept his ideas or plans now when he is still part and parcel of the economic mess created under his Chairmanship as the Economic Management Team (EMT) of this poorly performing Akufo-Addo-led government.

Dr. Bawumia, while in opposition, succeeded in convincing expectant Ghanaians, that the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia-led government was the antidote to the incompetence of the erstwhile President Mahama’s regime and the general underdevelopment in the country.

Additionally, the vice president and now the NPP presidential candidate made very lofty pronouncements, like President Akufo-Addo and the NPP Party, to the effect that Ghana’s money was sitting at the top and not trickling down to the masses, youth unemployment was worsening then, promised to change Ghana’s economy from taxation to production, engaged in responsible borrowings, arrested the dollar, etc. and thereby turn the then weak economic fundamentals around.

Rather, the general living conditions of Ghanaians and all economic indicators are excruciatingly worsening under Dr. Bawumia and the NPP’s watch now compared to the NDC and former President Mahama’s time in 2016. President Akufo-Addo and Dr. Bawumia have virtually deceived Ghanaians for their votes and now decided to govern the country in an insensitive manner.

Dr. Bawumia and the NPP party have both no viable Presidential Candidate and credible political message to turn the fortunes of Ghana around after President Akufo-Addo’s regime has messed the country up. There are still retrievable audio-visual recordings of Dr. Bawumia’s empty rhetoric which he cannot run away from now.

Even if Dr. Bawumia runs away from his rhetoric and the NPP party runs away from the bad records of Nana Akufo-Addo now, the discerning Ghanaian voters will teach them a bitter lesson come December 2024.

Considering the calibre of the weak Presidential Candidates presented by the NPP for 2024, Dr. Bawumia’s victory was no surprise. However, his average electoral performance on November 4, 2023, cannot match the first-class electoral performance of former President John Dramani Mahama who has a verifiable and stronger track record than Dr. Bawumia, Alan Kyeremanten and other Candidates.

That said, the NDC Party should not be complacent, but they should take their alternative and inclusive political message to the grassroots while keeping a vigilant eye on the doings of the Electoral Commission before, during, and after next year’s General elections.