Dr Bawunia and Politics

....He has become the most credible voice on economic matters in Ghana.

Musah Superior

There is no doubt that the 2016 Vice Presidential candidate of the NPP, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has become an important stakeholder in the NPP and solid personality in Ghanaian politics.This is undebatable. Nominated as running mate to Nana Addo for the first time in 2008, Dr Bawumia put in tremendous energy into the campaign by touring the entire country to articulate the position of the NPP on various issues to Ghanaians. He was one of our most prominent communicators; especially on economic issues in the electioneering campaign.

Coming fresh from a professional and disciplined background as an economist and banker and venturing into frontline politics for the first time, Dr Bawumia astounded many in the manner he sharply adapted to the 'hostile' political environment. In his own style and perseverance, he changed the discourse into the real bread and butter issues. He thoroughly discussed the economy and proffered solutions to the then economic challenges. He was disciplined and decent in his approach to national issues.

In 2012, Nana Addo retained affable Bawumia as his running mate. Again, Dr Bawumia didnt disappoint me and many of his admirers. He was instrumental in our collective efforts in the national campaign and the fantastic performance of the Party in the Northern Region - increasing our parliamentary seats from three in 2008 to ten in 2012. It was a remarkable achievement and Dr Bawumia was widely credited for that feat.

Dr Bawumia in the electioneering campaign spoke mainly on the economy as his campaign message; raising the bar of the discussions and achieved a more disciplined approach to the debate. In every conversation everywhere, Dr Bawumia demonstrated that he was astute on economic and financial issues. The rhetorics and propaganda of the NDC was checked as they were faced with a man whose credentials in finance and economics was globally recognised.

Then came the elections itself and the NPP "lost". The results of the election was dodgy and so we challenged it legally. Dr Bawumia was the key witness and most important element of the hearing on behalf of the NPP. Throughout the eight month hearing, Dr Bawumia worked tirelessly and deligently both in open court and behind the scenes to ensure that we argued our case to the best of our ability. He led in gathering the evidence and in preparing them; working closely with our legal team led by Gloria Akufo-Addo. Dr Bawumia was most articulate and eloquent in court. He demonstrated greater courage, commitment and unending trust in the petition. He was such an indefatigable witness in the entire judicial process. I was proud of him and still is for his dedicated service to our great Party. It was tough and challenging but Dr did not turn his back to us. He was there all through with huge optimism and unwavering fortitude.

It did not surprise me therefore that Nana Addo quickly retained his very good friend and trusted colleague as his running mate for the 2016 elections. He was absolutely right to do so and I commend him (NADAA) for his candour and fothrightness.

Dr Bawumia is a great leader. He posses the same set of qualities I enumerated about Nana Addo in the article I authored a couple days ago.

I visit Bawumia frequently at his residence. You hardly see him by himself at home. On daily basis, he is visited by all manner of persons most of whom are Party supporters. Others I must admit are some very high profile persons in our society. Dr Bawumia's skills in dealing with the huge volumn of visitations for me defines his person. He has always being calm, showing sunnier disposition, being excitingly interactive and engaging fully with the visitors.

Watching Dr Bawumia closely I have come to make the following conclusions about him.

He is a great communicator and this is to the advantage of our Party. Good communication skills are required at every level of political activism; that is why political leaders must possess outstanding communication skills. Luckily, this is a skill that Dr Bawumia posses adequately.

He Motivates his team. Inspiring others is the mark of an effective leader. Motivation is best done by example and guidance, not by issuing commands. Dr Bawunia is meticulous in discussing issues with people and will put in the time and energy to support people whose difficulties come to his attention.

He is a team builder. Putting together a strong team that work well is another trait of an efficient leader. The opposite is also true: if a team is weak and dysfunctional, it is generally a failure in leadership.

He takes risk. You can learn how to assess risk and run scenarios that will help you make better decisions. Good leaders take the right risks at the right time. A team depends on its leader to tell them where they are going, why they are going there, and how they are going to get there. People are more motivated when a leader jumps infront in times of danger. Dr Bawumia demonstrates this.

With Dr Bawumia as Vice President, he will work closely with Nana Addo to uplift the our country's sinking image.

Let's go for the two. They are the most credible pairs to fix the socio - economic problems that has bedeviled our country under the supervision of this incompetent NDC government.