The battle to succeed President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana approaches its climax with elections on December 7, with about 18 million citizens eligible to cast their votes. It’s a battle for the soul of the gold-rich West African country.
The successor to Akufo-Addo, who is in his second and final term in office, will likely be one among the two nominees of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The spotlight is on NPP’s Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the West African nation’s current Vice President, and NDC’s John Dramani Mahama, who has already had a stint in the presidential office from July 24, 2012, to January 7, 2017.
Dr Bawumia, an Oxford-educated economist-politician known for his digital transformation initiatives, is campaigning on the twin planks of economic revitalisation and technological advancement.
His tenure as Vice President has been marked by strides in digitisation, although he faces criticism over the current administration’s handling of economic challenges. In February, Dr Bawumia spoke publicly about rebuilding what he said was a “weakened” economy.
“When we assumed office in 2017, we were confronted with an economy with declining economic growth, along with several problems and challenges. Notwithstanding the difficult economy we inherited, we had to get on with it and start to fix the problems,” he said in an address to the nation.
Eleven months later, NPP’s poll slogan — “Breaking the eight” — unambiguously represents the party’s confidence in aspiring to go beyond President Akufo-Addo’s two terms of four years each to reach a third mandate. But there are enough indications that this would be far from a walk in the park for the ruling party.
As Mahama of the opposition NDC puts it, “The beauty of democracy is that it gives us the opportunity every four years to make a change”.
Counted among Ghana’s most experienced politicians, NDC’s 1958-born nominee from Damongo in the country’s northern region has a bachelor’s degree in history and previously worked as a secondary school teacher.
Mahama’s political career spans multiple roles, including MP, deputy minister, minister for communications, and Vice President.
He became Ghana’s President in July 2012, following the death of his predecessor, John Atta Mills, and went on to win the presidential election five months later. In 2016, he lost his re-election bid to Akufo-Addo, then the leading opposition candidate.
The two candidates are familiar rivals. Who will triumph?
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