The Deputy General Secretary of the National Democracy (NDC) has affirmed the party’s decision to maintain John Dramani Mahama as its presidential candidate for the 2024 general election.
Although Peter Otokunor was unable to confirm if NDC’s 2020 Presidential candidate had declared his intention to run in the 2024 elections, he described the introduction of a new presidential candidate for the party as “ridiculous”.
Speaking to Evans Mensah on Top Story, Mr Otukonor said reports from the grassroots indicate that Mr Mahama is the best choice for the NDC in the 2024 elections as it is believed that he will come and right the wrongs of the Akufo-Addo-led administration.
“The people of this country are resolved to give President Mahama a chance to come and fix what has been broken by the Akufo-Addo government. It appears that it is a groundswell from the party base that President Mahama would be our best choice for 2024. As to whether he will decide to contest or not, that one I may not be able to speak to that.
“As others have earlier on intimated that you have a marketed candidate, very well-known candidate, very loved by all, somebody who has to watch an election that has been botched, that has been altered, then you will go for a new candidate into a contest in 2024? I mean it will be most ridiculous. I think the worst political strategist will not make that mistake,” he said.
His comments follow a report released by the Economist Intelligence Unit on Friday, March 19, which suggested that although the NDC will win the general election, the party stands a better chance with a new candidate.
In the 25-paged document sighted by JoyNews, the EIU said this new candidate should be introduced to dispel rumours that former President Mahama, who is also the party’s 2020 flagbearer, is likely to contest again.
“After two terms of New Patriotic Party government, we expect the NDC to win the 2024 presidential election and to gain a small majority in Parliament…Mr Mahama is reportedly considering whether to run again, but we expect the NDC to seek to revitalise its prospects with a fresh candidate,” part of the report read.
But Mr Otokunor described the report as one that lacks credibility as it is based on “conjecture”.
“First of all, we think that the EIU report has not proved credible over the years so it is not any report that we would hold very high in esteem, especially as most of their research outcomes or their reports are not based on scientific research but rather ostensibly they are based on conjecture.
“So if it is conjecture by an individual who would sit and look at things that we already know, recount and make such conclusions, then the weight, the credibility, the gravitas, the contribution that it will make to political strategy would be very minimal and for that matter, I think that it is not anything to go by,” he explained.
He was of the view that the report by the EIU is trying to cover-up for their wrong forecast of the outcome of the 2020 elections.
“Everybody in this country knows that President Akufo-Addo didn’t win the 2020 Presidential elections. We know the NPP didn’t win a majority in Parliament. Contrary to the earlier prediction of EIU in 2020. So if they come up with this prediction, it is just riding on the back of the fact that the reality evaded or eluded them in 2020 and for that matter let’s make a prediction for NDC in 2024,” he stated.
In conclusion: “The people of this country are yearning for the real change that they desire. They are tired of the deceptive clueless incompetent government of the Akufo-Addo regime and I think that if the resolve they showed in the 2020 elections is anything to go by, it would amply be accentuated in 2024.”