THE New Patriotic Party (NPP’s) running mate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has revealed that he has always been a committed believer of the Danquah-Busia Tradition but due to his career as a public officer, he was unable to participate openly in the party’s activities.
Dr Bawumia, a Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, surprisingly emerged the choice of the flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who dumped all the frontrunners for the running mate position, settling on the relatively unknown Mamprugu royal.
DAILY GUIDE learnt that the 44-year-old Banker and Economist of international repute has always been on the card of the flagbearer who first dropped his name to some members of the campaign team while in Guinea as part of his tour of the West African sub-region just after his nomination at the party’s congress at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nana Addo, according to sources, was convinced that Dr Bawumia could be a good partner, after working with him on a number of projects including the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), when he was a Foreign Affairs Minister.
The flagbearer therefore set a team of insiders to work on an Akufo-Addo/ Bawumia ticket secretly, especially when party members had shown resentment when DAILY GUIDE dropped a story on April 30, 2008, under the headline, “NPP DREAM TICKET”.
The DAILY GUIDE publication, sources said, triggered negative reactions from party circles prompting the team working on the Bawumia agenda to go underground, working on the blind side of ‘againsts’ and other opposition parties particularly the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The NDC had spent the last couple of months building up dirt on the front runners for the running mate slot, and were ready to shoot them down, only for Nana Addo to dribble the opposition party.
No wonder minutes after the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the NPP had endorsed the nominee, his TV ads were running and billboards doting the skylines of the national capital.
Some names that were thrown out such as that of Alhaji Zakaria Adam, Principal of Bagabaga Teachers’ Training College, Tamale, according to sources, were only a decoy to take the attention off Dr Bawumia.
“The decision was planned hard and long. If he had come up too boldly, he would have been destroyed. That is why it was kept close to a few people,” one source said.
A clear indication of this was when a member of the Nana campaign team charged on DAILY GUIDE for dropping the name of the Bank of Ghana Deputy Governor as a possible running mate, saying that the NPP vice presidential candidate was not a party member.
However, Dr Bawumia on Sunday put to rest any doubts about his NPP credentials, telling the delegates, “I am truly one of you.”
He explained that his professional career and circumstances over the years had confined him to matters of finance and economic governance.
“Naturally, my open participation in partisan politics was curtailed. Even though I may not be known on the political platform, I have been very active in the economic platform.
I am proud to have contributed to the economic achievements of President Kufuor in the last seven years,” he added with confidence at the Sekondi College where he was formally introduced at NPP’s 16th National Delegates’ Conference.
“I have made my modest contribution behind the scenes to the solid economic foundation of the first eight years of the NPP government.
As a result of the strong foundation laid by the NPP, our economy is ready for a big leap, and in the wisdom of our flagbearer and national executive committee members, the time is ripe to bring me to the fore front. This is a view to which I subscribe.”
Dr Bawumia sees his nomination as a privilege and a unique opportunity to move Ghana forward, and pledged his support, commitment and loyalty to the party.
The hitherto soft-spoken Economist shocked his listeners, many of whom had never seen or heard him speak on a political platform, when in his greetings he as well acknowledged polling station executives as one of the important arms of the party.
With occasional nods of approval by President Kufuor, smiles on the faces of vice President Aliu Mahama and Chairman Peter Mac Manu, while Nana Akufo-Addo listened attentively, Bawumia chronicled his numerous contributions towards the economic development of the country.
According to him, Ghana is the first nation in the world to apply a cashless biometric system across the country, a feat he contributed to as Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana.
“The e-zwich common platform is modernizing the country’s payment system. The e-zwich has put Ghana on the map as a world leader in the application of biometric smart card technology.
Ghana is the first and only country in the world to deploy this technology across its entire country sector.”
This achievement, he contends, confirms Nana Akufo-Addo’s vision of moving Ghana from a third to a first world country, which has already begun under President Kufuor.
“We have been able to leapfrog ahead of countries like the United States of America,” he stated.
He said his contribution at the Bank of Ghana, coupled with the sound economic policies implemented by President Kufuor has for the first time since 1983 ended Ghana’s over dependence on the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Ghana can now pursue more independent policies without IMF conditionalities, he stressed.
He also enumerated his role in the implementation of the re-denomination of the cedi and the deregulation of the petroleum sector- a policy that saved the government a total of $700 million over three years, he intimated.
Dr Bawumia said his contributions in the banking reforms ensured the springing up of many banks in the country, with credit facilities to small and medium scale entrepreneurs.
He pledged to prove equal to the challenge of contributing to the building of a new Ghana through modernization of the economy.
He said he saw the invitation to partner the party’s presidential candidate, Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo as a call to higher service and unique opportunity and privilege to be part of the vision to move the nation forward.
Besides, it was victory for the NPP’s maturity, open-mindedness and progressiveness, he asserted.
The Deputy Governor said he would therefore serve the party with humility, dynamism and integrity.
He promised the rank and file of the party that his doors would always remain open and he will endeavor to develop friendship with all.
The vice presidential candidate therefore appealed to party loyalists to work together to ensure a resounding victory in December.
He expressed his gratitude to Nana Akufo-Addo for the honour of reaching out to him to serve as his running mate and the National Executive Council for the overwhelming endorsement.
Dr. Bawumia said he was also grateful and humbled by the numerous expression of support from across the country.
“From Aflao to Zebilla, economists, bankers and businessmen have called to express their congratulations,” he said.
This, he noted, signals the renewal of greater hope in the role the nation’s young people who are between the ages of 18 to 45 could play to turn the country’s fortunes around.
With these economic achievements, Dr. Bawumia said his contributions “behind the scenes” are enough and the time has come for him to be at the forefront in Ghana’s politics.
On the economy, he said a Nana Akufo-Addo-led administration will implement specific policies in the various regions to alleviate poverty across the country.
He maintained that the country under Akufo-Addo’s presidency shall build on the sound economic achievements of the Kufuor government and shall rise to the challenge in the pursuit of modernizing Ghana.
He thanked all friends, family members and sympathizers for their support, and swore to work in unity with the few, who for legitimate reasons had their reservation over his nomination.
He promised to work with the rank and file of the party to ensure that the NPP retained power in the December elections.
By Fortune Alimi, with additional file reports