Five months after risking his life and career to assist Nana Akufo-Addo achieve his childhood dream of becoming President; some powerful forces within the governing New Patriotic Party have stepped up plans to prevent Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia’s growing influence in the running of state affairs.
The aL-hAJJ has gathered that, Dr Bawumia, who until last year elections was NPP’s political marksman and touted by then Candidate Akufo Addo and party kingpins as the man with magic wand to lead government’s economic transformational agenda; “is fighting a battle of his life in order to uphold his authority as the second most powerful personality in the country,” a source familiar with happenings at the Flagstaff House disclosed.
Our sources in government have been narrating how some influential NPP kingpins close to the President, Nana Akufo-Addo, have over the past few months been deliberately plotting certain public happenings, all aimed at undermining Dr Bawumia’s authority and lowering his esteem in public eyes.
Despite his tireless effort in helping to secure victory for the NPP in the 2016 presidential and parliamentary elections and, was even publicly applauded by many including President Akufo-Addo, these high-ups, whose aim is at lifting the former deputy Governor of the Central bank hands off the running of government, are said to be questioning his loyalty and contributions to the party’s victory.
According to a very dependable source, a close ally of President Akufo-Addo recently told Dr Bawumia in the face that it took them a fortune to rally support in the Ashanti and Eastern regions to secure victory for the party.
“To them, the victory of NPP was based on the efforts by Ashanti and Eastern regions so if you are not from these two regions, you don’t matter in this government even if you are senior member of NPP…that is what is currently happening to number two (Dr Bawumia). They don’t regard him as the second most powerful person in the country. They want to assume his post and he (Dr Bawumia) is also resisting it,” the source revealed.
The Vice President, the source noted, is currently at loggerheads with the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwesi Amoako Atta; Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong and others over plans to remove the head of Department of Urban Roads, Ing Abass Awalu, and to replace him with their preferred choice.
Ing Abass Awalu, who was Dr Bawumia’s school mate at Tamale Secondary School, the source told this paper, “does not allow himself to be pushed around and he has become an impediment in the way of some powerful persons in government…because of that they want to remove him and fill the vacant position with someone they can easily control.”
But, the Vice President is said to have objected to the removal of the fine and hardworking gentleman from office and “this has created friction between the Roads and Highways Minister ably supported by Ken Agyapong and some other powerful guys in the NPP,” the source added.
Among Dr Bawumia’s challenge is what he sees as the inexorable dismissal of his Northern kinsmen from office which is fast making him unpopular in the North. Countless petitions have since been written to him with some warning him (Dr Bawumia), not to attempt to come up north to campaign in 2020, this paper has gathered.
According to the source, the vice President’s kinsmen are fuming over how Dr Bawumia has haplessly looked on while prominent Northerners have been sacked from office by President Akufo-Addo.
He cited the dismissal of the Controller and Accountant General, Mr Mr Seidu Kotomah; Head of State Insurance Commission, Lydia Lariba Bawa; Governor of Bank of Ghana, Abdul Nashiru Issahaku, Head of Local Government Service, Dr. Callistus Mahama; Director General of Ghana Ports and Habors Authority, Richard A. Y Anamoo; Medical Director of Accra Regional Hospital, Dr Thomas Anaba among others.
The source said, while NPP kingpins from the Eastern region are fighting to undermine Dr Bawumia’s position as vice President, another sect from the Ashanti region is also scheming to deny him automatic succession to President Akufo-Addo.
Hon recently signaled his hostilities with Dr Bawumia when he openly charged him to cut the economic theories and lamentations and focus on fixing the country’s bleeding economy as they (NPP) promised Ghanaians.
Hon Kennedy Agyapong, who is reported having an axe to grind with the vice president following his unsuccessful attempt to win contract for the yet-to-be commenced issuance of national ID cards for his associates, in a subtle swipe at Dr. Bawumia on Adom TV show Badwem recently stated: “Now our own words we’re chewing it, Ghanaians voted for us to fix the economy which was destroyed by the NDC. So no theories anymore, they’ve given you the power and we don’t want to hear excuses. All we want to hear is that we are going to fix the economy and make sure the teeming unemployed youth get job. So just as Nana Akufo Addo asked President Atta Mills to fix the economy, Dr Bawumia should do same,” Kennedy Agyapong noted.
The latest revelation about plans to do-in the Vice President feeds into reported cases of power play at the Flag Staff House. Reports are that while Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta is fighting the Veep over the management of the economy, Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Marfo is also scheming to take over the vice President’s role.
This grapevine information was given impetus last week by a lead reporter and political strategist of the Daily Guide newspaper, a paper owned by acting National Chairman of the NPP, Mr Freddy blay. Mr Charles Takyi-Boadu, openly stated of a “fight” between the Veep and Senior Minister over who works as vice President of Ghana.
The senior reporter of the NPP tabloid, on his facebook wall wrote “Looks to me the senior minister is competing for space and attention with the Veep; unless I’m not observing well?” Stay tuned.