Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia has expressed optimism that the NDC flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, will match the late President Jerry John Rawlings’ record of being the only head of state to have been sworn into office three times.

Speaking at a ceremony at the University of Development Studies (UDS) where Mr. Mahama delivered his post-election acceptance speech after he was elected flagbearer of the NDC, Mr. Nketia said Mr. Mahama will win the 2024 election.

Comparing Rawlings’ era to today, the NDC chairman noted that Just as Rawlings was destined to rescue the country some 44 years ago, Mahama is also destined to rescue the country now from the hands of the incompetent Akufo-Addo and NPP-led administration.

Mr Nketia said “President Rawlings swore to the nation three times – First as the chairman of Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), second, as chairman of Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) and third, as elected President of Ghana under NDC. We never chose this day, May 15, consciously, it just happened that today, we are repeating history in another form.”

Mr. Nketia noted that “President Mahama is going to be the second President to swear to this nation for the third time before he leaves. He has already been sworn in twice – he swore in as president after the unfortunate demise of President Atta Mills, the second term was when he was elected as president of the Republic, and on January 7th, 2025, he is going to conclude the history-making of this country, for he is going to swear with the state sword for the third time as the President of the Republic of Ghana.”

“This tells you that the man comes with divine guidance. Rawlings was chosen at a time the nation was considered to be at the lowest end and we hadn’t seen the works of Akufo-Addo yet, so at that time we thought that was the worst this country could come to. But today, those who can compare will realize that we were joking in those days and that the real bad times of Ghana, the worst time of Ghana is today.

“So, if divine providence had chosen President Rawlings to rescue the country in those days, today, President John Dramani Mahama is being chosen to do the work that has been left uncompleted by President Rawlings,” the NDC chairman added amidst applause from NDC executives and former appointees as well as some supporters gathered at the auditorium.

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