Bawumia, a very bad card?

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the Vice President of Ghana, may face challenges in winning the 2024 presidential election for several reasons:

The current government's economic performance has been severely criticised, and as the incumbent Vice President, who is the head of the Economic Management Team, Dr. Bawumia will surely face anti-incumbency sentiments.

It is also perceived that Dr. Bawumia is not liked by a huge chunk of members of the ruling party. And this perception became a evident when a relatively trifling 62 percent of NPP delegates voted for him during his party's presidential primary election; an indication that his own party members do not have confidence in him.

The NDC, the main opposition party, has a strong political machinery and a charismatic leader in John Dramani Mahama who is miles ahead of the NPP flag-bearer.

Furthermore, Bawumia has been accused of making contradictory statements, which has led to doubts about his trustworthiness, therefore, his policy initiatives and campaign messages are not resonating with the electorate.

He has been accused of making promises that he has not fulfilled, which has led to accusations of dishonesty.

This has been made worst by his shifting focus from the economy to digitization when the economy of the country is in a dire straits and needs a lending hand.

Besides, first time in history, the New Patriotic Party is witnessing a significant decline in its influence within the Ashanti Region which some people think could be partly be blamed on the party’s failure to make prudent and strategic decisions during its eight-year tenure, and possibly the choice of a disfavoured flag-bearer for the who does not come from the region which gives the party greater part of its votes.

As the NPP's once dominant bastion, the Ashanti Region, is now exhibiting waning support, the party must be extremely worried especially with regard to its ambition to continue ruling for more than the customary two terms.

Anthony Obeng Afrane