The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) can boast of vibrant and dedicated members who have toiled and sacrificed over the years. However, the least has been said about Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. His works over the years are palpable enough to be extolled. From his time at the Bank of Ghana through to international assignments and back home, Dr Bawumia’s impact on the NPP and Ghana at large cannot be shrugged off.
The love and appraisals for Dr Mahamudu Bawumia are no fluke, however, his hard work and dedication have brought him this far. As a son of Alhaji Mumuni Bawumia of blessed memories who was a lawyer and a Regional Minister, just to mention a few, it was very easy to tap into his father’s eminence, however, it wasn’t the case. Dr Bawumia wasn’t going to sit on his behind and mope, hence, every single accolade was fittingly worked for. Dr Bawumia returned to Ghana in 2000 after schooling overseas. The “borga” title as one is called when they touch down was not going to get into their head but rather propelled him to even work more as though he was Isaac and had been promised another woman.
Soon after his arrival, Dr was sent to the Bank of Ghana to help diagnose and heal the sick economy that the Kufuor administration inherited. To those who did not know, Dr Bawumia worked and rose through various ranks at the Bank of Ghana, including helping to design and implement the inflation-targeting framework that continues to guide monetary policy and the workings of the Monetary Policy Committee at the Bank of Ghana, at least I’m glad they know now. Fast-forward, Dr Bawumia was chosen by candidate Nana Akufo-Addo as his running mate heading into the 2008 general elections. It is no doubt that the hard work of Dr Bawumia helped increase the NPP’s vote shares in the Northern part of Ghana as compared to previous elections, particularly the 2004 election.
Unfortunately, but for some overconfidence and joy on the part of some leading members of the NPP who had relaxed heading into the run-off election at Tain because they had taken lead but could not amass the required number of votes (50 + 1), the Elephant would have been reinstated due to the relieve the Kufuor administration brought on the economy which cannot be discussed without the Bawumia factor. Dr Mahamudu Bawumia yet again was chosen to be the running mate for the Elephants in the 2012 general elections, although some core members of the party wanted a new face. The Nana-Bawumia combo had just begun.
The Bawumia factor continued as the Party won ten (10) seats in the Northern Region including Yendi, Walewale, Yagaba – Kubore, Bunkpurugu, Bimbilla, Chereponi, Kpandai, Tatale – Sanguli, Tolon and Zabzugu. The Nabdam and Talensi Constituencies in the Upper East Region were also swept away by the NPP. Again, the NPP lost the presidential seat, however, this time, it wasn’t a fair loss. Data analysis being one of his prowess, after collecting and analyzing data, Dr Bawumia together with his team noticed the elections were not fair hence the need to challenge the results. As a man of integrity and peace, Dr Bawumia and his team requested that though the Umbrella had been erroneously unfastened, every member of the Elephant keep calm and not resort to violence nonetheless, the result will be challenged legally. All documents were ready but then again, the one to lead the Lord’s battle which this time round was going to be in the courtroom nearly dwindled the vigour gathered. Dr Bawumia owned up and accepted to be the star witness.
Competent Bawumia
For a young man with no legal background to have that intelligence and valour to appear before high-profiled legal practitioners to present facts came as a surprise which eventually turned into a trend that caught the fancy of almost the entire nation. Perhaps, that was the awakening of the DMB fever. Though the NPP lost by a slim margin (4, 5) in the 2013 court ruling, it was evident the Electoral Commission headed by Dr Afari Gyan had its shortcomings which were exposed, all thanks to Dr Bawumia, the star witness at the time. Such a workaholic and results-oriented patriot are not sidelined when the need to ‘Break the Eight’ for a ‘Greater Ghana for All’ is necessary. I will leave you with this wise saying, short advice is like a mini skirt, it covers only the important parts.
The singer of “Abule” revealed in an interview with Accra-based YFM that he first visited Ghana when he was seventeen. According to Patoranking, he had to get employment in Accra Mall because, at that time, he needed to earn money to support himself.
Patoranking, Musician
“I came to Ghana when I was 17 years and I used to be working at the Accra Mall,” he said without disclosing the exact job”. He added that “I also worked at a restaurant directly opposite Frankies at the time”. The award-winning Nigerian artist described how difficult life was at the time while also revealing that he got accepted to the University of Cape Coast (UCC). But he claimed that he left because he was an overseas student and couldn’t afford the tuition.
Beyond this, Patrick Nnaemeka Okorie, better known by his stage name Patoranking, has emerged as one of the new generation of successful Nigerian singers. He has worked with well-known African artists like Sarkodie, Tiwa Savage, and Timaya among others to produce a number of popular songs.
One of his international hits is the remix of “Girlir O” with Tiwa Savage. The single, which was released in 2014, made its MTV Base Official Naija Top 10 chart debut at No. 9. As a fan of Patoranking’s music, Tiwa Savage told Ehiz of MTV Base that she had approached him about doing the remix.
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has been referred to as Ghana’s top digital champion by Minister for Communications and Digitalization Ursula Owusu Erkuful due to his crucial contribution to Ghana’s digital transformation.
The Vice President has been widely praised for his zeal and leadership in pursuing this goal. He has led various digital interventions in the nation, which he says are necessary to establish a modern economy. The Communications Minister appreciated Dr. Bawumia’s prominent position in a Facebook post, as well as the unbreakable connection between digitalization and the transformation of a contemporary economy.
For leading the nation’s digital initiatives in areas including the biometric identity system, digital address system, mobile money interoperability, digital medical drone service, digitization of government services, and ePharmacy, among others, Dr. Bawumia has received accolades.
“Ghana is building a digital Ghana and a digital economy. Digitalisation and economic development go hand in hand. As the chairman of the Economic Management Team, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has embraced the in-depth understanding of Digitalisation and is executing his mandate effortlessly. He is the foremost DIGITAL CHAMPION in Ghana” she posted on Facebook.
Whereas I have underscored some of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s significant contributions while working in various capacities at the Bank of Ghana with other distinguished members of the erstwhile Kufuor government in my preceding article, there are still other impacts he made that are deserving of notice. However, I will strive to highlight only a handful. The sedulous Dr Bawumia’s technical influence on several of President Kufuor’s major accomplishments cannot escape our microscopic lenses.
The Millennium Challenge Account
The Millennium Challenge Account was one of the primary programmes that spiralled economic growth and poverty alleviation under President Kufuor’s NPP government. Dr Bawumia was a part of the Government Team that negotiated the Millennium Challenge Account Compact with the US Government, which was signed on August 1, 2006. In the first instance, the program raked in $547 million for the nation. These funds benefited the Ghanaian people in a variety of ways since they were used in critical sectors of national development. For example, the rural economy was bolstered by agricultural modernization, as well as the expansion and rehabilitation of roadways throughout the country, most notably amongst them was the George Bush Highway. All of this was primarily aimed at pulling many of our people out of poverty through increased production. Today, the Millennium Challenge Account continues to have a significant impact on our national economy.
GhIPSS and E-Zwich Initiative
Dr Bawumia was involved in the conception and realisation of the E-Zwich common platform for all banks, savings and loans businesses, and rural banks, which allows for interoperability across financial institutions in Ghana. While in charge of the Bank of Ghana’s digitalisation programme, he spearheaded the establishment of the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Bank of Ghana which seamlessly connected all the financial institutions in Ghana. This project was a watershed moment for Ghana’s financial and banking sectors. The E-Zwich provided significant assistance to those involved in various financial activities and enhanced the rate of financial inclusion among Ghanaians.
The Redenomination of the Cedi
We cannot do justice to this topic without considering the redenomination of the Ghanaian Cedi. Again, as a member of the team, Dr Bawumia played an important role in the design and implementation of the Ghanaian Cedi redenomination through his technical expertise. This singular height saved the economy from the excessive cost of printing money and strengthened the cedis. At one point, the Cedi equalised with the dollar.
The Inflation Targeting Framework
Dr Bawumia was instrumental in the formulation and implementation of the inflation targeting framework, which notably decreased inflation to 10.2% by 2007 from 40% in 2000 while preserving relative exchange rate stability during his time as Head of Monetary Policy and Financial Stability. This inflation targeting framework continues to act as a reference for the Bank of Ghana’s Monetary Policy Committee.
Conclusion
These are just a few of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s contributions to the NPP government from 2001 to 2008. Quite frankly, Dr Bawumia did not just appear on the scene from nowhere in 2008 to be a Running Mate to Nana Akufo Addo (as he then was) as his detractors would have us to believe. His selection as a Running Mate was purely on merit and the solid credentials he demonstrated while serving under President Kufuor’s NPP government in diverse positions at the Bank of Ghana.
The government’s current fiscal and monetary policies will, without a doubt, restore macroeconomic stability and instil confidence in the Ghanaian economy in the medium term. It has been done before, and it will be done again.
The Kufuor Administration’s enormous achievement from 2001 to 2008 cannot be underscored without including Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who, along with others, made an important contribution. It is not surprising, however, that President Kufuor, a man endowed with wisdom and careful with his words, does not mince words and continues to trumpet Dr Bawumia’s credentials at every chance.
Given the stakes, a party like the NPP and other major political parties are unlikely to compromise their chances by nominating a stranger as their running mate. Even though Dr Bawumia was not a politician, he was no stranger to the then-NPP government. He was a backroom pillar of President Kufuor’s administration, working closely with Yaw Osarfo Marfo, Kwadwo Baah Wiredu of blessed memory, Paul Acquah, Anthony Akoto Osei, and a slew of other dignitaries in government and the party at the time.
Dr Bawumia’s demonstrable technical expertise led to his rapid and remarkable climb from Economist to Snr Economist, Head of Department, Special Assistant to the Governor, and eventually Deputy Governor before being nominated as Nana Akufo Addo’s Running Mate (as he then was).
His indelible footprints are visible in many of President Kufuor’s administration’s triumphs, particularly in finance, banking, and the economy. Dr Bawumia, for example, headed the Bank of Ghana team and was also a member of the Government of Ghana team that negotiated the HIPC assistance project in 2001. The HIPC initiative resulted in the cancellation of nearly $4 billion in debt, which was stifling the government and limiting national growth and progress at the time. The HIPC initiative has resulted in considerable rural development across the country in the fields of education, health, and infrastructure, which are still useful to both rural and urban Ghana. Despite its controversy at the time, the HIPC project offered a fiscal space that enabled President Kufuor to accomplish his transformational agenda.
Dr Bawumia oversaw the soundness of the country’s banking system as a Deputy Governor in charge of financial stability. During that period, Ghana had an influx of several universal banks across the country. Indeed, because of the banking sector’s robustness at the time, many banks were pursuing clients and potential clients with credit facilities.
Ghana was able to raise $750 in the international Eurobond issue for the first time in 2007. Apart from the fact that Ghana’s Eurobond was four times oversubscribed, Ghana was the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to accomplish that remarkable milestone. More pleasing was the fact that Dr Bawumia, as Chairman of the Capital Markets Committee, oversaw the strategy used to raise this critical finance for the country in the international market.
Such is the characteristic of a brilliant and competent Dr Bawumia, who has consistently worked hard to guarantee that the NPP attains a higher height in its endeavours, whether in government or opposition.
Ghana Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia during an interview with The Standard. [File, Standard]
Amongst the dignitaries who attended President William Ruto’s inauguration on Tuesday, September 13 was Ghana’s Vice President, Mahamudu Bawumia. The Standard had a sit down with him after the ceremony and he had this to say.
How was your experience at President William Ruto’s Inauguration?
It was a very successful event not just from my perspective but also from that of Ghana. It is just not a Kenyan success story but an African success story to have a peaceful transition of power. We remember the old days of difficult transitions and since we have embarked on the democratic journey, every step and milestone is important.
How would you rate the diplomatic relations between Kenya and Ghana?
We have very good relations that date back to independence when our first President Kwame Nkrumah and Kenya’s first President Jomo Kenyatta shared good relations. They engaged in the independence struggle against colonialism and got our countries independent with their movement. Subsequently, our relationship has been growing. There is a sizeable Kenyan community in Ghana and because of Kenya Airways, which has a direct flight to Ghana, there are a lot more commercial ties between the two countries.
Africa is in the process of implementing The Africa Free Continental Trade Area (AFCTA). What is your view on its implementation and potential challenges?
People like Kwame Nkrumah were a bit ahead of their time with their vision as they held a view that Africa needed to be cooperative and united which is today being manifested. AFCTA is the biggest free trade area in the world. It is important that Africa trades by itself as we have largely traded with our colonial masters. AFCTA is an idea whose time has come and Ghana is the secretariat hence we are very passionate about it. There are a lot of opportunities and potential to realize.
The bottlenecks to be experienced is logistics and transportation. Another challenge will be payments, but recently I launched the Pan African Payment and Settlement Systems (PAPS) in collaboration with the Central Bank which allows someone from Kenya to buy something in Ghana in Kenya Shillings without the need to worry about a third-party currency like the US dollar to trade. This is a major innovation that will help us bridge the gap that we have in the payment and settlement area.
It is important that we open up the skies. It should be an open sky policy and build up the infrastructure links across the countries. I believe we have the opportunity and the ability to make it happen to realize the dreams that our Nkrumahs and Kenyattas had.
Inflation is an issue grappling many African countries, how is Ghana handling the challenge?
The cost of living across the world has just increased phenomenally, this is coming at the back of the Covid-19 pandemic which disrupted the global supply chain and increased shipping costs almost tenfold. When we thought we were recovering, we had the Russia and Ukraine war that caused an increase in energy costs and as a result, food prices skyrocketed. It has affected every country and Ghana has been no exception.
We are trying to deal with the issue in this context of very squeezed and tight budgets. On the monetary side, the Central Bank is trying to contain inflation with their monetary policy through a number of interest rate increases to try to contain the situation. The Government still continues to offer free senior secondary school education to our citizens which lessens the burden on families in terms of cost of living.
Ultimately, we deal with this crisis by expanding the cost of production, if it’s a food crisis then you deal with food production. The energy side is a bit difficult since we are net importers of oil and have to be at the dictate of the international markets. We hope sooner or later the Ukraine crisis will albeit bring down the energy crisis but the government is always looking at ways to deal with this.
While at the Central Bank you once reduced inflation from 40 per cent to around 10 per cent, how did you deal with this?
To reduce inflation, you need a good mix of fiscal policy and monetary policy. Inflation is fundamentally a monetary phenomenon and it’s the fiscal that can drive the monetary side of it. If you can work to make sure that your balances on the fiscal side are not excessive, and your balances are not excessive so that you may have to enrol in monetary financing of that deficit then it reduces pressure on prices then you are able to contain inflation. We implemented an inflation target framework, one of the few African countries at the time, and it has proven very successful but that alone is not sufficient as you also have to look at the output side by increasing production.
Ghana Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia during a sit down with The Standard. [File, Standard]
You are a renowned global economist and have headed Ghana’s Central Bank. President Ruto ran his election on the promise of a bottom-up economic model, what’s your take on it?
The Bottom-up economic model is a model of inclusiveness which is fundamentally a good model. What we have seen in Africa since independence is that we have had development without inclusion. What we have seen is that 60 years after independence many people do not have a bank account, access to electricity, so many mothers die giving birth because they do not have access, and so on. So many people are excluded from the economic system, so if you are trying to transform an economy you cannot transform an economy on exclusion because a substantial population are amongst those excluded. The idea that President Ruto has of the bottom-up model is a good one, and I think is one that many other African countries should emulate if they are not doing so.
As the Vice President of Ghana, you have been at the forefront of spearheading digitization, what has its effect been on the economy?
In Ghana, we have really focused on pursuing digitization as an economic strategy. When you look at the world, we are now in the fourth industrial revolution globally which is a digital revolution. It is a revolution that is based on data, and systems. If you are an economy in this world and you don’t digitize you are going to be left behind. Africa has been left behind for too many of these periods, and I believe that digitization is a key to leapfrogging. We digitalize not for its own sake but to solve problems, formalize and build a more inclusive economy, deal with corruption and to provide services to our people more efficiently from the government side. A lot of people were excluded from the economy so we did digital IDs for our people, so we have unique identities for everybody. Once you have unique identities for everyone you will not have ghost workers on the payroll and also sort the voter registry.
We had an issue with the address system in Ghana, and through digitization, we solved the problem. Every part of the country, land or water, mansion or shark you have a unique digital address that we have rolled out in the country. This has solved a big problem as now deliveries can easily be made through e-commerce, and in the instance you are applying for a job you can easily state your address.
On financial inclusion, we have implemented mobile money interoperability. It is not just operability between the mobile companies, but interoperability between the mobile wallet and a bank account which means that every mobile money account practicably has a bank account. We were the first country in Africa to do so. Today it is very easy for someone to open a bank account in Ghana, you have your national ID card, you get onto your mobile phone and then dial a USSD Code and you chose one of the banks and there you go, you have a bank account. We have integrated all our databases which enables us to get value out of our digitization process. Digitization is the way to go for other African countries and with it, we can leapfrog other advanced countries. Today in Ghana, we are the largest medical drone delivery service in the world. We have drones flying all over the country, today we have 100 flights a day delivering medicine.
You have been fronted as a front runner in Ghana’s next election in 2024, what is your take on it?
Right now I am focused on helping my boss President Nana Akufo-Addo fulfill his vision and delivery of his agenda. We have no time to think about that right now until we get to 2024.
What is your message to President Ruto?
I congratulate him on his victory and inauguration. I want to wish him very well, this is a major task and a major burden but God will see him through. He is a very smart man, he has been a deputy president for a while and he knows what to do. We are praying for him and wishing him the very best and we are looking forward to what he does for Kenya.
Black Sherif, a hip-hop artist from Ghana, has been nominated for this year’s BET Hip-Hop Awards in the Best International Flow category. Since breaking into the Ghanaian music scene, The Kweku the Traveller has been persistent, releasing back-to-back smash songs for his audience. The young artist, who was the lone nominee from Ghana, worked with a number of well-known artists, including Burnaboy, R2Bees, Kwesi Arthur, DJ Breezy, and DJ Khaled of American music fame.
Black Sherif, Musician
Prior to this, he made history by becoming the first artist from Ghana to exceed 100 million Boomplay streams. Ghana has missed out on the BET nomination for the past two years, and the young man hopes to follow in the footsteps of Ghanaian rapper Sarkodie, who won the award in 2019.
– Benjamin Epps, Blaxckie, Central Cee, Haviah Mighty, Knucks, and ale Juiice were also in the same category. The BET Hip-hop Awards 2022 are scheduled for October 4, 2022.
Former President John Dramani Mahama has stated that if elected president, he will release all people who have been arrested for engaging in illicit mining activities, also known as “galamsey.” The former president promised that he would see to it that individuals who had been detained for galamsey would be released and given the opportunity to carry on with their illicit mining endeavors during an interaction with a group of NDC members.
Former President Mahama
See more here “Eye Zu! When we win power, all those arrested for engaging in galamsey would be given amnesty for them to come back. We believe that whatever law they flouted, they’re remorseful so we shall free them and give them another chance to work as galamseyers” Mahama promised. Following the re-arrest of Chinese galamsey queen Aisha Huang, who had returned to the country after being presumed to have been expelled to China, discussions regarding the fight against galamsey have become more intense. The Akufo-Addo administration has come under fire from the previous president for neglecting to take serious action against galamsey in an interview with TV3.
The same person is featured in this video pledging to free everyone who has broken our mining rules and been imprisoned while also allowing them to resume their illicit mining activities. Then-candidate Mahama sent individuals like Dr. Tony Aubynn, Kwaku Boahen, and Michael Kwadwo Peprah into galamsey-prone areas in the run-up to the 2020 elections to persuade them to vote for him because he would permit them to perform their galamsey if he won the polls. The previous president has frequently urged people to participate in galamsey.
This administration has already invested millions of dollars in its war against galamsey. This strongly suggests that the former President does not support the battle against illegal mining because it comes from him.
Politicians and attorneys alike have been warned by Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah to use caution while speaking out against the judiciary. Speaking on September 12 at the 2022/2023 Ghana Bar Association Annual General Conference in Ho, he cited the 1982 brutal murder of three High Court judges as evidence that words should be chosen carefully. In remarks delivered on his behalf by Justice Jones Dotse (Jsc), the Chief Justice (CJ) criticized politicians for making statements that endanger judges. “We in Ghana have had a chequered history. We have had three distinguished judges of the High Court abducted and killed. We celebrate this incident since it occurred.
Chief Justice Anin Yeboah
“I have made sure if I am in the country, I always attend these functions. As lawyers, we should not make careless comments and remarks that will revisit the occurrences of 1982.
“I, therefore, entreat all of you to be very very circumspect in making very dangerous comments about the judiciary. I am not saying so because I am a judge because once you are in it, you are in it.
“But then comments from members of the bar and senior politicians should be such that we are not…judges are not put up for sale by those who want to cause commotion and confusion in the country,” Justice Jones Dotse stated. On June 30, 1982, a day now known as Martyr’s Day, three High Court Judges and a retired army officer were assassinated in the open at the Bundase Military Range in the Accra Plains. The assassins had kidnapped them that evening.
Justice Fred Poku Sarkodie, Major Rtd., Mr. Justice Kwadwo Agyei Agyepong, and Mrs. Justice Cecilia Koranteng-Addo were the four. John Acquah. John Dramani Mahama, a former president of Ghana, has recently expressed worry over a deterioration in public trust in the court. According to him, restoring public confidence in the judiciary will just require the appointment of a new Chief Justice. “There is therefore the urgent need for the Ghanaian Judiciary to work to win the trust and confidence of the citizenry and erase the widely held perception of hostility and political bias in legal proceedings at the highest courts of the land.
“Unfortunately, we have no hope that the current leadership of our judiciary can lead such a process of change. We can only hope that a new Chief Justice will lead a process to repair the broken image that our judiciary has acquired over the last few years,” Mahama stated during a forum for NDC attorneys on August 28. Attorney General Godfred Dame has described the comments by Mahama as deplorable, coming from someone who has been a former president.
Kennedy Agyapong, the Member of Parliament for Assin Central, was in fact invited by the Council to the recent Asogli Te Za, according to information clarified by the Asogli State Council’s secretary (Yam Festival). The MP really requested an invitation to the event, according to a statement from the secretary dated Monday, September 12. He said that the Council was aware of earlier “loose comments” ascribed to the outspoken MP, hence this request was not instantly approved. “Honourable Mr. Kennedy Agyapong requested, through his representatives, for an invitation to attend some programmes of the 2022 Asogli Te Za (Yam Festival).
“The leadership of the Asogli State Council however disapproved of it because of several loose comments and utterances he had made which the Council viewed as unbecoming of an Honourable Member of Ghana’s Parliament,” he stated. In order to further demonstrate his acceptance of responsibility for the error that resulted in the invitation being sent to the MP, Stephen Tetteh also provided a compilation of press items that substantiate the aforementioned comment.
Hon. Kennedy Akompreko Agyapong
See more on “In view of the above, I accept responsibility for the administrative lapse which resulted in the sending of an invitation letter to Mr. Agyapong. I apologize to both the Asogli State Council and Mr. Agyapong,” he stated. Kennedy Agyapong was said to have attended this year’s Te Za (Yam Festival) at the invitation of the Asogli State, according to earlier reports.
Parts of the letter, which was written on Asogli State Council letterhead, read as follows: “The Agbogbomefia Togbe Afede XIV, Asogli State Council and the Festival Planning Committee have the pleasure to invite you to witness the Sitting-In State of Agbogbomefia Togbe Afede XIV on Friday September 9 and the climax of the festival which is the Grand Durbar on Saturday, September 10, 2022, at 10:00 am at Jubilee Park, Ho.” The State Council letter, written to “Honourable Kennedy Ohene Agyapong,” concluded. “We hope that you will make time out of your tight schedule to celebrate with us.”
This letter was also on the back of a report on Friday, September 9, 2022, that indicated that Togbe Afede XIV, the Agbogbomefia of the Asogli State, rejected some gifts presented by Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, MP, as part of his contribution to the people of the Asogli State who were celebrating the annual Yam Festival.
The MP had visited Ho to pay homage to the chiefs and people of the Asogli State.
But the gifts he sent, according to a graphic online reportage, were rejected at the durbar ground. Some sub-chiefs, who served as intermediaries to receive the gift on behalf of Togbe Afede XIV, rejected the gifts and asked the MP to take them away.
A video depicting Mr Agyapong on the durbar grounds had some voices in the background shouting “away”.
