Politics

Ghana’s Energy Minister Prempeh selected as Bawumia’s presidential running mate

Published

6 months ago

July 6, 2024

The incumbent energy minister will be the running mate to Ghana’s vice president, Mahamudu Bawumia, on the platform of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in December’s presidential election.

In January 2025, President Nana Akufo-Addo will leave office after fulfilling the eight years required by the constitution. Though none of the ruling parties have ever won more than two terms in a row, they are frequently regarded as favourites to win presidential elections in Ghana.

The decision by Bawumia to select Matthew Opoku Prempeh, a Christian, legislator, and doctor from the heavily populated Asante region of Ghana, carries on a long-standing custom in which the two major political parties select running mates from disparate religious and ethnic backgrounds to promote unity and win over more voters.

The 61-year-old economist and former central banker Bawumia was chosen by the NPP to run for president in November of last year, setting up a race against the comeback-seeking former president John Dramani Mahama.

Both Mahama and Bawumia are from the Muslim-majority north of Ghana, which is less economically developed than the country’s southern areas. Prempeh, 56, oversaw President Akufo-Addo’s free senior high school policy while serving as minister of education from 2017 to 2020. The initiative was criticized for being inadequately carried out.

The blunt politician, a member of parliament since 2008 and a member of the Asante royal family from Ghana was appointed to head the Ministry of Energy in January 2021.

Since then, he and his party have been enmeshed in a rising energy crisis that Mahama’s National Democratic Congress party was criticized for not being able to resolve when it was in office.

Bawumia is not just the first individual from outside the dominant Akan-speaking ethnic group to lead the NPP, but also the first Muslim leader of a major party in Ghana since 1992. By selecting Prempeh, he hopes to revitalize the NPP in the Asante area, where dissatisfaction has been stoked by claims of little chances for party members.

As his running partner for his third bid at the presidency, Mahama has chosen Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, a literature professor from central Ghana and a former minister of education.

Related Topics:Featured Ghana Mahamudu Bawumia

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Politics

Burkina Faso releases 4 French spies after Moroccan intervention

Published

1 day ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In a diplomatic spat over their imprisonment, France and Morocco announced Thursday that four French nationals detained in Burkina Faso for a year had been freed after mediation from Morocco.

They were spies, according to a prior statement made by the director of France’s foreign intelligence organisation, the DGSE.

A request for comment was not answered by the DGSE or a representative of the French military, which is in charge of the agency.

Since December 2023, they have been held in Ouagadougou.

President Emmanuel Macron hailed King Mohammed of Morocco on Wednesday for his intervention, “which made possible the liberation of our four countrymen who had been held in Burkina Faso for a year,” according to a statement from the French administration.

King Mohammed and President Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso were also commended by Morocco’s foreign ministry, which stated that “this humanitarian act” was made possible by their positive bilateral ties.

In October, France made peace with Morocco, one of its former protectorates, after three years of hostilities between Paris and Rabat stoked by immigration concerns and the disputed Western Sahara region.

Morocco offers Burkina Faso and other military-ruled Sahel republics Atlantic trade.

However, France’s relations with former West and Central African colonies, such as Burkina Faso, remain difficult. In Ouagadougou, French troops and diplomats were ejected, the defence attache and ambassador were asked to depart, and certain French media were suspended.

The military junta that took control in 2022 in Burkina Faso has been criticized by international rights groups for cracking down on free expression and harassing dissidents to handle a security crisis precipitated by Al Qaeda and Islamic State extremists.

Politics

Ghana: President-elect Mahama appoints anti-corruption team

Published

2 days ago

December 19, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by his transition team on Wednesday, Ghana’s President-elect, John Dramani Mahama, has designated an anti-corruption committee to investigate allegations of wrongdoing.

When he takes office next month, Mahama, the leading opposition candidate in the presidential election held on December 7 and who received almost 56% of the vote, has pledged to reclaim the proceeds of corruption and hold those responsible for it accountable.

In anticipation, an anti-graft squad has been established. The parliament’s Committee on Assurances, which has previously raised suspicions of governmental corruption, is chaired by MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah.

An investigative journalist, a private attorney, a former auditor general, and a former police officer with experience in high-profile robbery cases make up the other three members.

After looking into alleged financial irregularities that took place during the previous administration, Daniel Dumelovo, the former auditor general, was fired.

Recovering lost assets and fighting corruption were two of Mahama’s main campaign pledges.

“He intends to hit the ground running on these commitments,” the statement said.

Eight years after leaving office, former President Mahama is back to head the West African country. Despite not being personally contaminated, he faced criticism during his 2012–2016 administration due to claims of political corruption.