—As NPP Campaign For Presidential Successor Gatherers Momentum
Whatsup News has picked up some disquiet from within the camp of Trade Minister, Alan Kyeremanten in connection to allegations that President Akufo-Addo has adopted a tactic of sending Mr. Kyeremanteng on a fool’s errand to distract him from his alleged 2024 presidential ambition.
According to insiders from the Alan camp, the President intentionally assigns him official duties anytime plans to meet with interest groups about the 2024 Flagbearership. Apparently, a mole is said to be in his camp relaying his itinerary to the Jubilee House.
According to our sources, the President’s assignment, and their coincidence to Mr. Kyeremanten’s meeting plans have become too obvious that there is a leak going on around him.
The alleged moles in the Alan camp are believed to be snitching on him so that he does not gain much foothold over Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, who is seen as the President’s anointed successor.
As the intrigues deepened, Northern Regional Secretariat of the NPP Mohammed Baantima Samba, on Monday openly declared support to the Vice President even though campaigns have not officially opened and although he is an Executive who is not supposed to take sides.
“The NPP currently wants somebody who can lead us to break the 8 years string in 2024 and so far Dr. Bawumia has demonstrated his capabilities as a person who can lead us to victory” he had told journalists.
Mr. Baantima also analyzed that the NPP is hinged on a trinity of foundational groups –Busia, Danquah and Dombo – and that a person from the Busia group (former President Kufuor) has had the opportunity to be President on the NPP’s ticket; President Akuo-Addo is from the Danquah group and that it is the turn of the Dombo group after President Akufo-Addo.
Interestingly, Mr. Baantima’s analyses ignore the fact that the backbone of NPP support is from the Ashanti Region where Alan Kyeremanten hails from.
As Ashantis continuously become disenchanted with the NPP over the lack of development projects from the Akufo-Addo government, it is feared that Vice President Bawumia’s ambition to succeed Akufo-Addo, can deeply harm the party in its stronghold.
However, Dr. Bawumia also has a compelling selling point going for him – that his election as Flagbearer will deodorize the NPP’s reputation as an Akan fascist party.
Unfortunately for those campaigning along that line, the last time that Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu touted it, he found himself at the receiving end of a tirade of lambasting, including an outright insult from former Energy Minister, Boakye Agyarko.
For those who are not supportive of a Bawumia candidature in 2024, they make the point that Bawumia is not his own man and that President Akufo-Addo is grandfathering an agenda to have him as his successor so that he and the so-called “Akyem Mafia” in the party, can have a poodle to control even after the Akufo Addo had completed his tenure.
Having a puppet President in Bawumia would ensure that a current state of affairs in the country which is seen as a hegemony of the Akyem Mafia family and friends will continue.
Besides, Dr. Bawumia is also perceived as a candidate who will be a tough sell to voters because of his reputation as someone who is untruthful.
And the wide perception that the Akufo-Addo government has largely failed to achieve many of the grandiloquent promises that were made from the NPP’s days in opposition does not help matters for Dr. Bawumia.