Dr Bawumia, the liar, Shamefully lied against his Own father

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia lied on 16th June 2023 during the submission of his nomination forms at the NPP Secretariat. He alleged that he was a hustler who grew up under difficult socio-economic circumstances. This blatant lie could have awoken his late father, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia, from his grave. According to Dr. Bawumia;

‘I have walked to school in Moshie Zongo in Tamale I have been a by-day worker on farms during secondary school holidays I have been a warehouse boy after finishing University I have been a minicab driver in London I was only able to pay fees for one term during my studies at Oxford University and had to survive for the rest of my studies by paying fees…I have been a cleaner at dormitories at the University in Canada.’

These were the words of the venerable Vice President of the Republic. The vice president was very economical with the truth. It’s a matter of public knowledge that Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was born in 1963 with a “silver spoon” in his mouth. His late father, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia ( of blessed memory), must be turning in his grave after suffering such gargantuan betrayal and lies from his begotten son.  Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was not a poor man. He gave each of his sons and daughters the best quality of life and education.

Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was one of the earliest lawyers to emerge from Northern Ghana in the 1960s. He was highly respected as belonging to the class of Northern intelligentsia and elites. Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was a distinguished public servant par excellence. He entered politics early in his life and got elected to parliament in 1954 under the aegis of the Northern People’s Party. In 1956, he was re-elected as a member of parliament under the United Party. In 1958, he crossed carpet from UP to CPP, where he was duly rewarded with the portfolio of Minister for works and housing. He was subsequently appointed under the CPP Government as minister for Local Government and the Northern Region. During the days of the National Liberation Council Government, he was appointed the commissioner for special development. By 1978, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was appointed chairman of the cocoa marketing board now, Ghana Cocoa board. In 1988, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was appointed Ambassador of Ghana to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. From 1993 to 2001, he was chairman of the Council of State, the first Ghanaian to hold office in the 4th Republic.

To seek elective office, there’s no need to engage in falsehood with the view to hoodwinking delegates to vote for you. Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia attended Tamale Secondary School from 1976-1981. During this period, Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia was either a practising lawyer or the chairman of Cocoa board. Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia’s son could not be a by-day worker on farms or walk to school out of poverty or difficult economic circumstances. Dr. Bawumia’s claim of being a minicab driver in the UK must be taken with a pinch of salt. To acquire a license to drive a minicab in the UK, the applicant needs to undergo training in the practice and theory of driving together with a deep knowledge of the geography of London. It took people a long time to pass through all these processes. It’s not as easy as driving an UBER or YANGO in Accra.

Due to the economic capability of Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia did not attend university in Ghana. He attended Oxford University, the best university in the UK, where his father paid all the fees. It’s shameful and betraying to deny Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia the credit for paying his school fees in Oxford. At the time, Dr. Bawumia attended university in the UK and Canada, and his father was either a practising lawyer or an ambassador of Ghana to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Nothing could be far from the truth if Dr. Bawumia listed menial jobs undertaken in the UK and Canada during his school days as evidence of a struggling student. He didn’t lack the financial support of Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia to undertake his studies in the UK and Canada.

I shudder to think that he may have taken the trajectory of falsehood to create the false impression that he was a hustler, hoipoloi, or a lumping proletariat and thereby win the sympathy of the unsuspecting delegate. Could Dr. Bawumia has also done that because the story of some candidates and co-competitors appear to be attracting votes from the delegates? Your guess is as good as mine.

What Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia did, was  unacceptable. We can not accept similar stories from the sons of E. A Mahama, Asuma Banda, Osei Kwame Despite, and Dr. Kwaku Oteng, just to mention a few.

Kwabena Yeboah-Korankye

NDC Youth Activist

Kade Constituency