A leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Obiri Boahen has said the Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is the best material to lead the party into the 2024 general elections as presidential candidate.
According to Mr Obiri Boahen, given the present circumstance that the NPP finds itself, the Vice President who he said is well-marketed and competent is the party’s best bet going into the next polls.
He was reacting to a political scientist and member of the NPP, Dr Richard Amoako Baah who had asked Dr Bawumia to step aside for the others who were in the party before he joined to contest to become the next flagbearer of the NPP ahead of the 2024 elections.
Dr Amoako Baah told TV3 in an interview that there were others who had the ambition of becoming president but they put that quest on hold to support candidate Akufo-Addo to become the president.
They hoped that that it would get to their turn after President Akufo-Addo is done serving his term.
These persons, he said, were party insiders before Dr Bawumia joined hence, it is only fair that they are allowed to contest to become flagbearer.
“We don’t understand what we are doing in terms of democracy and party politics,” he said, adding that “Just because you hold a certain position does not make you an automatic candidate, there were other people there before you came.
“Look at the situation, Nana Addo brought Bawumia in, Bawumia was not an NPP insider, Nana Addo brought him in. People opposed it but he was adamant and he went to the elections with him but they lost, they went again and they lost, went again.
“That is twelve years, twelve years in line the others were still waiting. In most countries this will not happen, two times you are out, are you the only person in the party?”
He added “We had great hopes in Nana Addo and so we said we should let him go. I worked so hard for him but look at the situation now, you bring a young man as shadow Vice President for twelve years, plus four years that is sixteen years now. He is going for another four years and that is twenty years.
“What happened to those who were in line who were challenging Nana Addo? Twenty years, you should step aside because you have to be fair to the party. Step aside and let the others also compete, that is fairness. You don’t say I want this, I don’t want this and because I picked him as Vice President he should go. Is he the only person in the party?”
But speaking on the mid day News on 3FM with Dela Michel on Wednesday February 23, Nana Obiri Boahen who is also a private legal practitioner said “It is a pleasure talking to the future campaign director of Dr Bawumia. We are democratic and Dr Amoako Baah is entitled to his views. But I beg to differ, he is propounding an alien theory in politics and in our tradition and in this country.
“It is not a question of people have queued for positions. I joined the NPP in 1992 but as I speak to you today, I am not a member of any board. I joined NPP in 1992, at the material time I joined NPP in 1992, there are some who are cabinet ministers today, who were then, in primary schools. So it is not a question of age, it is not a question of experience, it is not the question of having joined the queue in 1980 or 1990, it is a question of all of us agreeing to join a political party. The purpose of joining a political party is to ensure that you capture the political power.
“The bottom line is that, it is not the question of Nana Addo who brought Bawumia. It was the consensus of the leadership of New Patriotic Party that brought Bawumia. In NPP, we don’t give the individual the opportunity to select his running mate, in NPP, we don’t give the opportunity to the individual to select his campaign manager, rather it is through consensus building.
“Those of us who are promoting for Dr Bawumia are doing so because we believe strongly that within the given circumstance he is competent, capable to deliver and he is going to deliver.”
