The popularity of politicians is often determined by the degree of political influence and support
they command among their people.
Nowadays, this political influence is often referred to as political capital. So what is political capital? It is defined by attributes such as the goodwill,confidence, trust, power and influence that politicians acquire by advancing credible policies and aspiring to causes greater than themselves.
Metaphorically, political capital is a kind of invisiblepolitical currency that politicians use to secure electoral victories or to mobilize the people behind more progressive policies.
For example, President Barack Obama invested his political capital in pushing through the Affordable Health Care Act, otherwise known as “Obamacare,” against seemingly insurmountable opposition from his adversaries without significant damage to his party.
Clearly, political capital is important for both the long-term and short-term success of any
politician. Without political capital, a politician’s chances of winning elections or effectively
leading a nation during tough economic times is virtually impossible.
The NPP government has spent significant political capital to push through bold and visionary
flagship policies such as the free SHS program, banking reform, tax reductions, national
identification program and the war on “galamsey.”
The political fallout has been enormous. While the entire government has taken a hit, no one has been as exclusively targeted as the Vice President, Dr. Bawumia.
In recent weeks, Vice President Bawumia’s opponents have deliberately been spreading false information about him regarding the depreciation of the cedi. Their intention is to drain his political capital and degrade his reputation. Of course, as head of the economic management team, some of the constructive criticism of the Vice President is warranted because
“the buck stops with him” and the President if/when an economic crisis arises.
Nonetheless, most of the criticism coming from the opposition is dishonest. It is meant to discredit the Vice President and undermine his political capital in order to weaken him in advance of the next political contest involving him.
Few can deny that the Vice President is held in very high esteem in Ghana. He has earned a sterling reputation for being knowledgeable, competent, intelligent, hardworking, and highly credible on matters concerning the economy.
This kind of reputation is earned by maintaining consistent intellectual engagement and a stellar record of accurate predictions about the direction of Ghana’s economy.
Moreover, as the head of the economic management team, the Vice President wields considerable influence in setting policy.
For example, he has been leading the effort to computerize operations at the country’s ports, digitalize the addressing system in the country and ensure that a national identification card is provided to every Ghanaian.
Thus, the Vice President has built his political capital over the years through the quality of his public engagement and performance.
Not surprisingly and arguably, Vice President Bawumia is the most powerful and influential
person ever to occupy the VP position in the history of Ghana.
His enviable position is due to a combination of his political capital and his excellent relationship with the President, who has wisely seen fit to entrust the Vice President with many meaningful responsibilities.
The transformation of the Vice President from a virtually unknown academic and technocrat to a
thoroughly credible and highly influential politician is now having the sort of “eureka” effect on
most of the NPP members, who may have been skeptical about his selection as the running mate in 2008.
However, for the opposition NDC, the Vice President represents a clear and present
danger to their political fortunes.
Why is this? Vice President Bawumia threatens the very foundation of the NDC. Since the advent
of the fourth republic, the NDC has characterized the NPP as an Akan dominated party.
Their narrative has been that no non-Akan can ever become the face of the NPP. Thus, Dr. Bawumia’s ascendency to the position of possible future Presidential candidate and the substantive responsibilities he has assumed as Vice President challenge that narrative.
Not only is he a northerner, the Vice President has broad appeal arising from his cosmopolitan values, his intelligence, tolerance, temperament, competence and humility. These qualities would make him a formidable candidate if he were ever to run for President.
The NDC could no longer rely on its propaganda machinery to attack the NPP as an Akan party and their ability to use the politics of division to galvanize the support of the minority ethnic groups against the NPP would evaporate.
The Vice President’s political capital must be insulated from reckless and irresponsible attacks for short-term political gains. This vital task must be undertaken for national cohesion, stability and progress. Vice President Bawumia represents an opportunity to overcome our out-dated politics of division, tribalism and spurious populism.
Ghana needs a unifier with the pedigree of Dr. Bawumia who can build bridges between the diverse groups that exist in the country and harness the energies and resources of all Ghanaians irrespective of their station in life, gender, ethnicity or religion.
Moreover, Dr. Bawumia’s politics of intellectual engagement has elevated the political
discourse in the country to one based on ideas, where dialogue and creative solutions are valued.
Just as the late Canadian Prime Minister, Pierre Trudeau represented Canada’s highest aspirations for achieving unity between French and English Canadians at his time in history, Dr. Bawumia represents Ghana’s best hope of bridging the ethnic, religious and economic gaps that exist in the country at this moment in time.
It is therefore in our collective national interest to stop the irresponsible and reckless attacks on the Vice President, but to safeguard his unique gift to the country by criticizing him constructively so that he can become a better leader.
Source: Kwame Abrefah, Canada
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Excellent piece.My advice to NPP is if they make mistake of undermining the the effort of this brilliant humble economic guru's ambition of demystifying that Akan party tag,the party is doomed forever.Dr.Bawumia is the face of NPP after Nana Addo,and as such we must be happy because he's more than competent to continue the party's agenda to develop Ghana.I'll plead with the members to sell their your individual interest for that of the party's future after Nana.
Mr Abrefah, have you forgotten all the lectures the Vice President held about our economy and what we should be doing to make things better before the 2016 elections. He set the marking scheme himself and we will use his own scheme to grade him. He has performed poorly and I doubt he has what it takes to rescue us from this economic hardship. He said he arrested the USD with 50 cedis, locked it up and gave the keys to the IGP. As an Economic Dr, he should have known better. I guess the USD bribed the IGP with 5 cedis and has been on the run since
Such a lousy article. The Stick that was used to beat Baah would be the very stick to beat and whip Takyi. Now that the exchange rate has exposed him and his government, what are you saying. But He and his government have done better than the NDC. But expectantly nothing has been done yet as against the large borrowing promises. NPP is such a disgrace when it comes to loans. they have made the NDC turn into saints. We shall continue to lash them with Takyi's stick.
Thank God somebody appreciate the nature and worth of Mahamadu Bawumia the gem of our society. The liars who do not want the truth will be betrayed in the long run. Let them continue basking in their hallucination and "comfortable lead".STEALERS AND CREATIVE LOOTERS."the artful dordgers"
Thanks very much,dr.bawumia is indeed the best Vice-President Ghana ever hard.All the attacks on him are deliberate just to discredit him. He is far more better than JDM when he was Vice-President and the President as well.Dr.Bawumia is NDC main targets to destroy him. Things just don't go bad in seconds,but lasts long before, NDC have destroyed Ghana's economy for eight (8) good years and Akuffo Addo/Dr.Bawumia can't take two years to put the economy on track of what they have damaged. We love Dr.Bawumia and they can't destroyed him their propaganda. NDC are afraid of him and he is their main obstacle. NDC wish they have him in their party.....but they can't get him. Thanks kwame Abrefa, God bless you and waiting to read from you soon
Be honest whoever wrote this piece. He’s even just a Vice President. The nnonsense he portrayed when he want to be vice will continue to hunt him. This just the beginning so try to get another word. Koshia vice.
Mr. Abrefah, nobody has been more insulting than the Veep. Even in power, he still insults his opponents if they criticize him genuinely. He brought this upon himself because during the 2016 elections campaign, he was all over the place insulting and demeaning his opponents and projected himself as the would be saviour of Ghana because he was an economic guru.
This kind hypocrites still dey this world inside? Are you really lamenting about personality attacks at Bawumia? You need to have your head examined, cus everything Bawumia said in the past & present hv turned out to be lies.. He should be apologising to Ghanaians every morning for taking us for ***barred word***
Mr. Kwame Abrefah, I hope you forgot your pen and paper or your laptop when Dr. Baumia and his wife were attacking the then president Mahama. Were you not listening to them at that time? Stop the hypocrisy or Dr. Baumia is more human than Mahama hence, he should not be attacked. His own action leading up to 2016 election is the reason he is going through this in the hands of his political opponents. Such is life.
Bawumia is a big time liar, what didn't he and his wife say about JDM, which has come back to haunt him, no one will have pity for him for lying big time when in oppositon and now in power