Election 2024: What exactly is Bawumia and the NPP campaigning on?

During the 2016 general elections, the then candidate Akufo-Addo and his running mate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia together with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) mesmerised the Ghanaian populace with a flurry of campaign promises and massages. They were full of exciting and compelling messages that ultimately won the confidence of many Ghanaians.

The entire NPP campaign strategy was built around catchy slogans such as “one district one factory, one village one dam, one constituency one million dollars, we will transition Ghana from taxation to production, we will transform Ghana within eighteen months, we will not run families and friends government” among others.

The NPP promised to restore the value of the Ghanaian currency, create employment opportunities, protect the public purse and fight corruption with the Anass’ principle. They also promised to bring down inflation, cost of living and enhance the living standards of Ghanaians. It was easy to identify and define the trajectory of the NPP’s campaign.

After being in power for eight years and obviously failing to fulfil those promises, the NPP has shifted their attention towards “Breaking the 8” which is unprecedented and an extremely tedious task considering their abysmal performance in the past 8 years.

Unlike the 2016, elections, there is no clarity and directions in the NPP’s campaign going into this year’s election. It is difficult to identify what exactly the NPP is campaigning on. Their campaign is largely hinged on the past, they are over reliant on the Free Senior High School policy. The policy has been fraught with numerous challenges that have remained unresolved. It suffice to state that, the free SHS policy was a populist initiative which was badly implemented.

Again, the NPP is over emphasising digitalisation. What the NPP has failed to realise is that digitalisation is not a policy. It is an inevitable phenomenon happening globally, and no one can claim credit for it.

Digitalisation is not a policy but a fundamental phenomenon that has redefined the way societies, businesses and governments operate around the world, and Africa has been no exception to this technological revolution. Over the last two decade, all African countries have experienced a significant impact due to the massive adoption of digital technologies in various sectors and this is reflected in major African governments and funding programmes at both national and continental level, which have been designed to help Africa’s citizens to take advantage of the digital revolution.

In view of the above, it is clear that, the NPP has no clear and concise message going into this year’s election. Their only hope is to keep reminding us about the past. Ghanaians want a framework for national development and not regurgitation of old and badly implemented policies.

The NDC and John Mahama have presented clear and pragmatic policies such as the 24-Hour Economy, Free First year tertiary education fee, District Farmers Mechanisation Centres, the Women Bank, five designated banks for importers and establishment of one university in each of the six newly created regions,