In the past few weeks, the Vice President and the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP)
flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, and his campaign team have made calls
for a debate with former President John Dramani Mahama. This has raised
some eyebrows, because usually it is the opposition candidate who yearns for
a platform with the incumbency in order to make their case known, not the
other round.

The fact that Dr. Bawumia, a sitting vice president, is calling for a debate with the opposition is a mystery and an irony and therefore requires scrutiny. The question is, should Mahama debate Bawumia or not, Do we actually need a
debate to make our decisions on December 7, 2024?

Evidence from current events and the economic situation in this country strongly suggests that Dr. Bawumia needs this debate far more than former President Mahama does. Dr. Bawumia’s political career is hanging by a thread. His political career will soon be in tatters and in an irremediable state unless a rare miracle occurs. His previous utterances while in opposition in relation to the current state of Ghana mean that his integrity and credibility will be
questioned, the economic factors suggest he is dishonest, inconsistent and
irresponsible and extremely deceptive.

He is aware that the odds are highly stacked against him going into the 2024 election because he has flattered to deceive; therefore, he is seeking to revive his political fortunes with this proposed debate.

The expression “desperate times call for desperate measures” was coined by
Hippocrates, the famous Greek physician. It suffices to say there is obvious
desperation and anxiety in the camp of Dr. Bawumia; he is like a drowning man
who will clutch to a straw. He is desperate, helpless and hopeless, so he wants
an opportunity to salvage his dwindling political fortunes.

There are those who may deduce that the former president is afraid if he
declines this trap; far from it, as a communicator, evidence suggests that former President Mahama is not at all scared of a debate because he is knowledgeable, fluent, accurate, and coherent. However, political debates are for people of equal standing, and a political “mate” cannot debate a political "driver.”

There is no need for any debate between John Dramani Mahama and Dr.
Bawumia, the economic variables, i.e. cost of living, exchange rate, debt,
GDP, inflation, interest rate, and unemployment rate are enough to educate
Ghanaians.

Never underestimate a desperate person like Dr. Bawumia; you never know how far they will go to get what they want. Dr. Bawumia has no superior argument; he just wants to stand shoulder to shoulder with H.E. John Mahama to suppress the discussions around corruption, economic mismanagement, and the hardships Ghanaians face. He will only make excuses and throw unnecessary jabs to make headlines. But he should be told that you don't win a debate by suppressing discussion; you win it with a better argument, which I don’t think Dr. Bawumia has.

In my view, a good leader like the former president can engage in a debate
frankly and thoroughly, knowing that in the end, he will come out vindicated
especially with an inexperienced and dishonest persona like Dr. Bawumia, but
“monkeys play by sizes”. Mahama is above Bawumia’s level in everything.

If Dr. Bawumia wants Mahama to consider debating him, I will humbly suggest
he first of all debated himself about his own integrity in relation to the
pronouncements he made while in opposition, debate his own lectures since
2013, go to the media and provide answers to the questions he posed in his
lectures. Those answers should address the current economic challenges.

Dr. Bawumia should answer the questions on the current high inflation,
national debt, high exchange rates, high interest rates, the historic “haircut”
killing innocent pensioners, and the high and unbearable cost of living Ghanaians are currently facing.

The National Democratic Congress should NOT even conceive the thought of
allowing John Mahama to debate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, because the latter
is a limping candidate desperately scanning for a non-existent opportunity to
revive his dead political career, which will be a waste of our time.
Ghanaians don’t need this debate, the NDC doesn’t need this debate, and the
only people who need this debate are Dr. Bawumia and his team.

Former Mahama does not need to debate Dr. Bawumia for Ghanaians to know
how he put the national resources into better use, leading to the building of
universities, schools, airports, hospitals, and markets across the length and breadth of the country, with limited resources as compared to the NPP. Ghanaians do not need a debate to know how better H.E. John Mahama managed the economy and how the NPP and this government mismanaged this economy with Dr. Bawumia as head of the Economic Management Team.

If Dr. Bawumia had a scintilla of respect for Ghanaians, he would not have even
conceived the thought of contesting for the presidency, considering the flurry
of failed promises on his record, he even has the temerity to keep making
promises on his recent campaign tours instead of apologising for the previous
failed promises. Clearly, he has no respect for Ghanaians.

The debate must not happen; it will not be in the interest of Ghanaians but in
the interest of a dishonest politician seeking to revive his dead political career.