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Even before President John Dramani Mahama gets the endorsement of members of the National Democratic Congress on November 7, 2015; intense pressure is being mounted on him to retain Vice President Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah Arthur, as his 2016 running mate.

The President, The aL-hAJJ has gathered, is torn between retaining his loyal, faithful and hardworking technocrat, Amissah Arthur or having to replace him with a relatively young candidate to be groomed and sufficiently marketed for the 2020 elections.

Even as calls for Amissah Arthur’s retention is becoming deafening, sources close to the President say “he is looking beyond 2016 because after that he will not be eligible to contest the 2020 elections and that means, while His Excellency Amissah Arthur has so far acquitted himself by being faithful and loyal, and hardworking, he (President Mahama) must nevertheless, get for himself and the NDC a worthy candidate as his successor to prepare him or her for 2020.”

The choice of running mate for President Mahama ahead of the 2016 elections generated media blitz after he instructed Amissah Arthur to pick his (Mahama’s) nomination forms ahead of the NDC November 7 presidential and parliamentary contest, a strategy Managing Editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr, has described as “masterstroke”.

Soon after this development, media reports suggest President John Mahama was most likely to retain the former governor of the Bank of Ghana for the crucial 2016 elections.

A well-known loyalist of the vice President, Maxwell Okamafo Addo, has been leading the crusade for President Mahama to retain Amissah Arthur as running mate.

In an article titled “Why Mahama will retain Amissah-Arthur as running mate” Maxwell Okamafo Addo wrote “When it comes to choosing a great mate, whether in politics or business, the essentials extend well beyond charisma, connections and political leverage. The fundamental elements are trust, loyalty and complementary skills and qualities.”

“Vice Presidential picks should always share the substantive President’s values and vision. Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has proven himself a humble leader who has exhibited that his humility is knows no bounds.”

“What the people of Ghana are looking for is a humble selfless, truly confident intelligent, non-corrupt God-fearing Vice President who is working and focused. His strong record on ethics and government integrity cannot be questioned in Ghana. President John Mahama and his current vice won the 2012 presidential elections and have so far enjoyed a robust relationship.”

Supporting this call was Central regional Chairman of the NDC, Bernard Allotey Jacobs, who has also endorsed a John Mahama/Amissah Arthur ticked in the 2016 elections.

Speaking on Peace Fm last week, Allotey Jacobs said "He (Amissah Arthur) is a man who can say a thing and stand by it. Ghana needs a man who will be accountable to you and all of us. We have found in him, these uncommon qualities and we believe that he has the modern world view that will see us do things differently and confront our problems with new approaches.

He said:” Considering the good working relationship between the duo of President Mahama and Vice President Kwesi Amissah Arthur, the wise thing is to allow the same team flies the party flag.

“He is an excellent professional, a man of faith, a devoted family man and a role model to our fellow countrymen and women. The vice-presidential candidate is a friend of the less-privileged, compassionate and zealous in service, a man of uncommon humility, a loyal, dependable and selfless patriot,” Allotey Jacobs stated.

Meanwhile, The aL-hAJJ can confirm that vice President Amissah Arthur is not an automatic choice as running mate to Mahama for the 2016 elections. It is possible President could once again spring one of his surprises. Te-wasum