Bawumia @60 – A Life Of Possibility, Accomplishment And Servant Leadership In Ghana

It is said that good leaders deliver results whereas great leaders develop people; good leaders have vision whereas great leaders have values; good leaders are role models at work whereas great leaders are role models in life. Again, it is said that effective leadership is defined not by attributes or flowcharts but by results and accomplishments. An examination of the life of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia confirms clearly that it is possible for one to be a good leader, a great leader, and an effective leader at the same time.

Dr. Bawumia is the leader who is not only focused on achieving results, but doing so, with impeccable effectiveness and efficiency. It is trite that leadership is about making life easy and comfortable for the people. Today, because of Bawumia, most of the ‘difficult things’ we do in life has been made easy and convenient by a simple click of a computer button or a mobile phone. Dr. Bawumia is the leader committed to using digital technology to transform lives, and make our life-burdens much easier and convenient.

Today, because of Bawumia, Ghanaians are able to easily transfer money from their bank accounts to MOMO accounts and from their MOMO accounts to bank accounts without visiting the bank. Today, because of Bawumia, Ghanaians are able to easily effect mobile money transfers from one network to another without incurring extra costs. Today, because of Bawumia, Ghanaians are able to buy ECG credits with their mobile phones without going to any ECG vendor.

Today, because of Bawumia, electricity consumers using postpaid ECG meters are able to pay their electricity bills without visiting any ECG office. Today, because of Bawumia, Ghanaians are able to renew their health insurance subscriptions with their phones without visiting NHIS offices. Today, because of Bawumia, about two-third of Ghanaians have access to a digital national ID (Ghana) Card and can travel with it across the globe even without a travelling passport. Today, because of Bawumia, a Ghanaian can visit any location in the country without asking anybody for direction.

Today, because of Bawumia, blood and other critical supplies are delivered to any geographical area in Ghana in a more secure, reliable and timely manner with the help of drone technology. Ultimately, today, because of Bawumia, the Ghanaian economy is becoming increasingly digitized and formalized in a manner that makes life easy while at the same time enhancing revenue generation, bolstering the fight against crime and saving the Ghanaian taxpayer millions of Ghana cedis which would have otherwise been lost through corruption and systemic wastage.

In the NPP, the name, Bawumia also personifies party loyalty, commitment, tolerance, sacrifice and selflessness all of which are the very principles underpinning the founding of the Party. It would be recalled that Dr. Bawumia is that person who, for love of his party (NPP), left a lucrative job as Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, to support the NPP as Running Mate in 2007, at the time everybody was tipping him to become the next Governor of the Central Bank. He only cared about the NPP.

When the Party lost the 2008 General Elections, he remained true and loyal to the NPP. Ahead of election 2012, Dr. Bawumia declined huge job offers by the World Bank and some top Universities in Europe and Canada, to focus on the NPP’s 2012 election bid. Dr. Bawumia was subsequently appointed as Running Mate. After the polls, when the Electoral Commission declared the NPP as losers, many NPP members and kingpins came to accept this fate. They gave up.

But, Dr. Bawumia would not give up that easily. He was convinced that many things had gone wrong in the elections and so, he gallantry inspired and led the NPP to conduct an intensive audit into the elections and all pink sheets leveraging on technology. In the course of this exercise, Dr. Bawumia was involved in a near fatal accident that almost claimed his life, but he never gave up. He led the Party to successfully uncover the rigging machinery that was deployed in the elections.

Dr. Bawumia who had virtually become a full time employee at the Party Headquarters with no salary, was thus vindicated. The Party then mounted an unprecedented election petition. Dr. Bawumia again abandoned all his schedules to become the Party’s Star Witness in the grueling 8-month election petition. Despite losing by a narrow 5-4 majority decision, all the nine (9) Supreme Court justices UNANIMOUSLY agreed with Dr. Bawumia that there were indeed several irregularities with the 2012 general elections and therefore made far-reaching recommendations.

Indeed, as a result of this Bawumia-inspired election petition, the EC, implementing the recommendations of the Supreme Court, undertook several election reforms making it practically impossible for elections to ever be rigged in this country. These reforms, coupled with lessons learnt by the NPP from the election petition, was what SET THE STAGE for the NPP’s historic victory in the 2016 General Elections, where the Party won by over a million votes.

Again, in the run-up to the 2020 General Elections, Dr. Bawumia chaired the NPP Manifesto Committee which Manifesto, delivered yet another resounding victory for the NPP in the presidential elections. The NPP won the 2020 presidential elections with over 500,000 votes, which is the highest margin of victory in the history of the Fourth Republic for a political party seeking a second-term in office.

All in all, Dr. Bawumia has proven to be the biggest revelation and addition to the NPP’s electoral fortunes in the last two decades. He has consolidated the NPP’s support-base among the middle class. He has delivered the Universities to the NPP. He has delivered his home region, [the original Northern Region], which used to be an NDC stronghold, to the NPP. I am not sure anybody ever imagined the NPP winning more Parliamentary Seats than the NDC in the Northern Region. In fact, Dr. Bawumia has delivered even the Zongos to the NPP.

It is also worth making the point that Dr. Bawumia’s emergence in the country’s political landscape has drastically changed the face of our body politic. He has changed our appreciation of politics from propaganda to facts and data. He is the all-time biggest threat to the NDC’s political fortunes. Dr. Bawumia is super tolerant, down to earth and trustworthy. He is only focused on getting the job done and delivering prosperity to Ghanaians and the NPP.

With this and more, you should understand why Dr. Bawumia is loved so well in the NPP, not just by the establishment but also the Party grassroots. You should understand why no one can beat Bawumia in any elections in the Party, today. You should understand why he won almost 70% of the votes in the Party’s Super Delegates Conference, and is set to win by even a much bigger percentage come November 4. You should understand why Bawumia is the only man who can lead the NPP to break the eight. You should understand why IT IS POSSIBLE.

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, you are indeed a great blessing to the NPP, and to every Ghanaian. We have all lived and felt your good, great and effective leadership. We cannot wait to campaign and vote for you as the next President of Ghana. As you turn 60 today, I am pleased to join the rest of the world to celebrate your life. It has, indeed, been 60 years of POSSIBILITY; 60 years of INNOVATIVE THINKING; 60 years of IMPACTFUL LIFE; 60 years of ACCOMPLISHMENT; and 60 years of SERVANT LEADERSHIP.

May ALMIGHTY ALLAH grant all your heart desires and continue to overwhelm you with His bountiful blessings and favours.

Assalamu alaik

Your ardent follower,

IDDI MUHAYU-DEEN