Kwabena Agyepong: Former NPP General Secretary Discloses Bawumia Was Not Qualified To Be Running Mate In 2008

• Former NPP General Secretary Kwabena Agyepong has dismissed claims that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is being sidelined for the presidential slot
• He said the party has instead been very charitable to the vice president because he was appointed Akufo-Addo running mate when he was not qualified
• Mr Agyepong said although his appointment in 2008 caused a major disagreement in the party, big wigs stood their ground

Former General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Kwabena Agyepong has dismissed claims there is a deliberate attempt to deny Dr Mahamudu Bawumia a chance to lead the party.

Mr Agyepong said the party has rather been charitable to Dr Bawumia because he was appointed as Nana Akufo-Addo's running mate when he was not qualified for the appointment.

He said Dr Bawumia did not meet the requirements to become a running mate because the party rules state that one must be a party member for at least five years before taking up that spot.

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Speaking on local language TV station Oyerepa TV, Mr Agyepong disclosed that a major misunderstanding ensued within the party when Dr Bawumia was appointed in 2008, but the party stood by him.

He made the comments to fight off criticisms that Dr Bawumia, who is among the lead contenders for the upcoming presidential primaries, was being sidelined by big wigs in the party for other favourites because of his background as a Northerner.

"I can state on authority that the executives were quarreling as to why Nana Addo could not get anyone but Bawumia. We later gave Nana Addo the benefits of the doubts. We have done well for [Bawumia]," he defended.

The governing party has been accused favouring people with Akan backgrounds at the expense of people from other ethnicities regarding top positions in the party.

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Already, there is a bitter feud between the camps of Dr Bawumia and his closest contender, Alan Kyerematen – an Akan – over who is most suitable to succeed Nana Akufo-Addo as presidential candidate for the 2024 election.

While the Kyerematen camp feels the trade minister made sacrifices in the past for Akufo-Addo to assume the top position, the Bawumia camp also feels as running mate, Bawumia should be next in line as a presidential candidate.

Amoako-Baah advises Bawumia to step aside for Kyerematen, others

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported in a previous report that a respected member of the NPP, Dr Richard Amoako-Baah, has advised Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to shelve his plans to contest the party’s presidential race.

According to the political scientist, the vice president does not have the party’s grassroots support because he is not a true member of the party.

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The former political science lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) told Starr FM that Dr Bawumia will do a poor job at leading the party as a presidential candidate.

Source: YEN.com.gh