Impactful Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia has received overwhelming support from the representative of the people in Parliament ahead of the presidential primaries of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).
This is because it has been publicly confirmed that over 100 out of the 137 NPP MPs in the legislature are backing the second gentleman of the land to lead the governing party to the 2024 general election.
Out of this number, about 40 of the lawmakers and the NPP General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong accompanied the Vice President to the funeral of Lepowura Alhaji Mohammed Nuru-Deen Jawula, who was a stalwart of the party.
Vice President Bawumia and his entourage rode in a bus for about two hours from Tamale to Salaga in the Savannah region to attend the solemn ceremony.
One of the MPs, Kofi Okyere-Agyekum representing the people of Fanteakwa South in the Eastern region confirmed that more than 100 of their colleagues fully endorse the Vice President to lead the party to victory in the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.
“We believe that it is Dr. Bawumia who can lead NPP to ‘break the 8’ in 2024. He is a gentleman, very intelligent and a highly competent personality who will be loved and supported by NPP faithful for us to retain power 2024”, Mr. Okyere-Agyekum also known as Arafat and the Ranking Member on the Public Accounts Committee ([PAC) of Parliament told Movement TV and Wontumi radio in Accra yesterday morning.
The governing NPP is working hard to be in power for more than eight years to break the jinx of successive political parties winning and losing elections after eight years.
The latest figure indicates that 10 NPP stalwarts have so far declared their intention to contest in the governing party’s presidential primaries, which will be held hopefully before the end of the year.
MPs with Bawumia
The NPP MPs who accompanied Vice President Bawumia were led by the Majority Leader in Parliament and MP for Suame, Mr. Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu and Majority Chief Whip and MP for Nsawam/Adoagyiri, Mr. Frank Annoh-Dompreh.
They include Kofi Okyere-Agyekum, MP for Fanteakwa South; Dominic Nitiwul, MP for Bimbilla; Kennedy Osei-Nyarko, MP for Akim Swedru; Alex Tetteh, MP for Sefwi Akontombra; Sheila Bartels, MP for Ablekuma North; Farouk Aliu Mahama, MP for Yendi, Habib Iddrisu, MP for Tolon; Hassan Tampuli, MP for Gushegu; Iddi Abdullah, MP for Salaga North and Alex Agyare, MP for Kade.
Others are Amidu Chinnia, MP for Sissala East; Abanga Abdulai, MP for Binduri; Tahidu Abdul Razak, MP for Cheriponi; Dr. Prince Armah, MP for Kwesimintsim; Steven Jalulah, MP for Pru West, Oscar Liwall, MP for Yunyoo; Hardi Tuferu, MP for Nanton; John Bennam Jabaah, MP Zabzugu; Joseph Cudjoe, MP for Effia; Collins Ntim, MP for Offinso North; and Dr. Amin Anta, MP for Karaga.
The rest are Mustapha Ussif, MP for Yagaba/Kubori; Kofi Marfo, MP for Achiase; Akwasi Konadu, MP for Manhyia North; Naana Eyiah, MP Gomoa Central; Freda Prempeh, MP Tano North; Elvis Morris Donkor, MP for Abura/Asebu/Kwamankesse; Philip Basoa, MP for Kumawu; Tina Mensah, MP for Weija Gbawe; Paul Twum-Barimah, MP for Dormaa East; and Mohammed Asei Seini, MP who Daboya well among other top big guys of the party.
In his message of condolence to the bereaved family, Vice President Bawumia described the late Lepowura as a good and kind man who devoted much of his life to sports development and public service.
About late Jawula
Alhaji M.N.D Jawula was a 74-year-old former football administrator.
He died in Nashville, United States of America – after a bout of illness – and was laid to rest the next day in line with Islamic traditions.
Burial prayers were said in his memory in the family house at Accra Newtown, simultaneously with the committal ceremony in Nashville.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA), Ministry of Youth and Sports, National Sports Authority (NSA), and many football associations across the continent, expressed their pain at the loss, lauding the Lepowura for his unalloyed service to football.
The charismatic Lepowura Jawula is regarded as one of the finest football administrators, having chaired the Black Starlets team that won gold at the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Ecuador ‘95.
His reign as GFA boss saw the rise of cadet football in Ghana – leading to the Starlets also finishing second and third at the Egypt ‘97 and New Zealand ‘99 World Cup tournaments respectively.
It was during his leadership, too, that Ghana’s Under-20 side (Black Satellites), placed second at the FIFA Under-20 World Youth tournament – a trophy
Ghana would win eight years later to become the first and only African country to do so.
He has held numerous high-profile positions in the corridors of football.
However, until his untimely demise, Lepowura Jawula was the chairman of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) Organising Committee, a member of the CAF Inter-Club Committee, and a board member of the RTU, a club whose return to elite football in 2021 he spearheaded after eight years in the doldrums.
Alhaji Jawula, who was a former Chief Director of the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Railways, Ports, and Harbours as well as the Ministry of Health, was the Lepowura of the Kujolobito Gate of Lepo-Kpembe in the Kpembi Traditional Area in Gonjaland, Savannah Region.
He also served as the Vice Chairman of the Ghana 2008 Nations Cup Local Organising Committee (LOC).
Born in 1949 by Kpembiwura Jawula Ababio, a former CPP party chairman and the only child of his mother, Lepowura Jawula attended the University of Cape Coast where he read English and Economics for his first degree before graduating with a Master’s degree from the University of Ghana, Legon, in African Literature and Social Policy.
