The New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, is expected to have Hon. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, Minister of Energy and Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, as his running partner.
In response to a National Investigation Bureau (NIB) survey, members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have indicated that their favoured candidate to run with flagbearer Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia is Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the minister of energy.
The results of the survey, which comprised 5,116 NPP delegates from different constituencies, national, regional, and voting station levels, showed that 76.2% of the executives surveyed supported Dr. Opoku Prempeh.
With 10.16% of the votes, he was preferred over Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister of Education and Bosomtwe Member of Parliament.
Other prominent individuals who were given consideration for the position were Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of Agriculture and Member of Parliament for the Abetifi Constituency, and Apostle Opoku Onyinah, the former Chairman of the Pentecost Church-Ghana.
The poll also revealed a high agreement in favour of selecting an Ashanti Region native as a running mate, with 84% of respondents citing Dr. Opoku Prempeh as the best option because of his charisma and standing within the party.
The NIB assessment, however, advised that given Ghana’s persistent power problems, Dr. Prempeh’s current position as Energy Minister could be problematic.
In order to increase Dr. Prempeh’s legitimacy in overseeing the energy sector and increase the party’s prospects in the next election, the report suggested that the government take these concerns seriously.
Read full report of the NIB: