IEA Planning Ghana Presidential Debate Ahead Of 2024 Elections: "Debate Is The Right Of The People"

IEA Planning Ghana Presidential Debate Ahead Of 2024 Elections: "Debate Is The Right Of The People"

  • The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is planning a presidential debate before the 2024 elections
  • A senior fellow at the IEA said discussions have already begun with various political parties
  • The participating parties and their candidates are expected to be selected via the Afrobarometer criteria

The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is working towards a presidential debate before the 2024 elections.

Professor Alexander Bilson Darku, a senior fellow at IEA, said discussions have already begun with various political parties.

IEA Planning Ghana Presidential Debate Ahead Of 2024 Elections
John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party (NPP)
Source: Getty Images

Darku told Citi News, via MyJoyOnline, that it will soon release a timetable to the public but declined to give specific details.

He also mentioned that the participating parties and their candidates will be carefully selected using strong criteria.

Darko expected that there would be some five candidates partaking in the debate.

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“We have our timetable, and very soon, it will be known to the public as to the programme that the IEA has outlined to make this all-important presidential debate come on."

The leading candidates ahead of the 2024 election are John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The NPP flagbearer previously dared Mahama to a debate to allow Ghanaians to assess each candidate's solutions to the country’s economic challenges.

He believes the big issue of 2024 would come down to the two personalities, and thus, it was fair that they be allowed to defend their proposals for fixing Ghana’s pertinent problems.

Mahama's camp is, however, not wholly receptive to such calls. Joyce Bawah Mogtari, spokesperson for the John Mahama campaign team, said the NPP's failures nullified the need for a debate, as MyJoyOnline also reported.

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Mogtari has also noted that the final decision may come to the leadership of the NDC.

Mahama and Bawumia clash at Ghana CEO Summit

YEN.com.gh also reported that Mahama and Bawumia faced up during the Ghana CEO Summit.

The two politicians discussed key economic indicators and argued about who had better outcomes over the last 12 years.

The summit brought together business leaders, policymakers, and industry experts on May 27, 2024.

Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
Delali Adogla-Bessa avatar

Delali Adogla-Bessa (Current Affairs Editor) Delali Adogla-Bessa is a Current Affairs Editor with YEN.com.gh. Delali previously worked as a freelance journalist in Ghana and has over seven years of experience in media, primarily with Citi FM, Equal Times, Ubuntu Times. Delali also volunteers with the Ghana Institute of Language Literacy and Bible Translation, where he documents efforts to preserve local languages. He graduated from the University of Ghana in 2014 with a BA in Information Studies. Email: delali.adogla-bessa@yen.com.gh.