Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, frontrunner in the flagbearer contest of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), has rounded up his nationwide campaign with a rally at the Upper East Regional capital, Bolgatanga.
The rally was attended by thousands of delegates in the Upper East Region, the Ashanti, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, North East and Upper East Regional Chairmen, recognized bodies in the party and volunteer groups.
It was the culmination of months of Dr Bawumia visiting all 16 regions to directly engage delegates for the November 4th contest and lay out his vision for the party and future government.
Accompanied by his spouse Hajia Samira Bawumia, Dr Bawumia recalled his contributions to the growth of the NPP over the years, the sacrifices he has made over the period, and proposals to address the concerns of party members.
“One of my main priorities is to deepen Party-Government relations. A key step would be to allocate a large proportion of the already existing appointments made by the President to the Constituencies and Regions directly. Therefore, each Constituency would be allocated a minimum of 10 appointments, while every Region would receive 20,” he disclosed.
Non-MP Appointees, he added, would also be assigned as god-mothers and -fathers to Constituencies to ensure they work within the Constituencies, with a Welfare Office dedicated to compiling the data and managing the needs of party folk.
“With these and some other measures, we will have a stronger and more united party than before.”
Urging delegates to ignore the “lies and propaganda” being shared by his opponents within and without the party, Dr Bawumia said the NPP is uniquely poised to break the mythical ‘8’ with him as candidate, and electing him as flagbearer would be the best decision the party could make at this time in its history.
“Among the four of us competing for flagbearer, I am the aspirant with the best track record in winning elections, having won two on the trot. I am the one with Governance experience, serving as Vice President for two terms. I am the one who can unify all the factions within the party. I am the one who can foster peace and unity between the two main religions in the country.
“To crown it all, I am the one the NDC fears the most, and with good reason. They know with me as candidate they will not have a campaign message,” he declared to thunderous applause.
Call for unity
Dr Bawumia called for unity before and after the November 4 poll, pointing out that this was just an internal contest, with the real ‘enemy’ waiting for combat out there.
“I want us all to remember that this is just a family contest to elect our leader for the main battle of December 2024. So I urge us all, after this Saturday, to come together, close ranks, forgive each other and prepare to do what many believe is not possible but which I, trusting in the Almighty, believes is possible. We will break the 8 together.”
He expressed his thanks to his Campaign Team, led by Fred Oware, other party stalwarts who have accompanied him on the nationwide journey, and all who have contributed in diverse ways to make the campaign a success.
