Time to stop calling him ‘Nana Addo’!
If more than one week later it still feels like a dream to me, how must President-elect Nana Akufo-Addo and Vice-President-elect Dr Mahamudu Bawumia be feeling?
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On December 7, Ghanaians gave an emphatic vote of confidence to the formidable duo, legal luminary and democracy campaigner Mr Akufo-Addo, and Dr Bawumia, an economics maestro.
Evidently, the New Patriotic Party’s labour paid off. They had taken to heart the lesson of their 2012 Election Petition, that elections are won at the polling station, and worked accordingly.
Conversely, I guess that for President John Mahama and his outgoing administration, it must feel like being entangled in a nightmare that they pray feverishly will vanish when they wake up.
For members of the Mahama team who could bear to watch TV news, probably one of the most painful aspects of their loss were the scenes of spontaneous euphoria.
There were wild, infectious celebrations practically from Accra to Zebilla over the victory of the NPP’s presidential candidate, 72-year old Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, popularly known as Nana Addo, or Nana. And in ‘the unkindest cut of all’, even President Mahama’s hometown, Bole, was not left out of the scenes of jubilation.
Mr Akufo-Addo’s third attempt at the presidency has been crowned with a clear win of 53.85 per cent as opposed to the National Democratic Congress’ 58-year old President John Mahama’s 44.40 per cent. The NPP has also gained a commanding majority in Parliament with more than 170 seats in the 275-seat legislature, as against the NDC’s 140.
What accounts for the ecstatic celebration of the exit of a government that prided itself on having the massive support of the majority of Ghanaians, and confident that the blitz of infrastructure and the ‘last-minute.com’ commissioning of projects, had sealed victory for them?
Mainly the astronomical rise in cost of living, notably electricity bills, was what some hoped to end. And the giant, costly Mahama billboards all over Ghana, even in deprived communities, as pointed out by the eloquent Samira Bawumia, only served to annoy people. Samira, Dr Bawumia’s wife, was one of the gems unearthed by the NPP’s Election 2016 campaign, as the President-elect noted in his acceptance speech.
Furthermore, the NDC under President Mahama will be remembered for insults. Even high office holders were guilty of extremely gratuitous abuse.
Shockingly, those who made fun of Mr Akufo-Addo’s short stature, included Vice-President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur. And Sports Minister Nii Lantey Vanderpuije is on record as saying that Ghana’s presidency is not for short people. They evidently forgot that the many other short people might take offence – and they, too, vote.
Anyway, on December 7, the Ghanaian electorate demonstrated emphatically that they do want the short man to be President because they believe that he can deliver.
There was hardly a week when an opinion leader or media commentators didn’t point to the need for action against the widespread allegations of corruption, as exemplified by the Woyome saga. The state is still owed a staggering amount of more than GHC51 million inexplicably paid to NDC businessman Alfred Woyome.
Probably for some voters, the last straw that propelled them to the polling stations was the pardon President Mahama granted the Montie FM Trio, Alistair Tairo Nelson, Godwin Ako Gunn, and Salifu Maase, alias ‘Mugabe’.
On July 27, 2016, the Supreme Court had sentenced them to four months imprisonment each for scandalising the court.
They had also threatened the Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Wood, with rape.
‘Mugabe’ claimed that he was working for President Mahama, but there was no comment from the President condemning the daily vilification of Mr Akufo-Addo in particular. President Mahama only stepped in to pardon them when the trio ended up in prison.
The NPP’s overwhelming victory must be all the sweeter to his well-wishers as his detractors said he couldn’t win; and because of the astonishing, zealous ‘pull-him-down’ campaign by his enemies from within, notably suspended NPP Chairman, Mr Paul Afoko, Dr Arthur Kennedy and Dr Nyaho Nyaho Tamakloe.
As recent as on the eve of Election 2016, Dr Nyaho Tamakloe was quoted in the media as warning Ghanaians against voting for Akufo-Addo.
Following the numerous reported problems with the Early Voting or Special Voting on December 1, the fact that the main election took place with so few hitches earned praises for the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Mrs Charlotte Osei, for the success of the first general election under her watch.
However, the positive feelings were soon erased by her long delay in announcing the results, although all the electronic media were announcing the provisional results from the polling stations. This delay generated huge, nationwide anxiety and suspicion that there were attempts to deny Akufo-Addo and the NPP their victory.
The other presidential candidates, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, Mr Ivor Greenstreet, Dr Edward Mahama, Mrs Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings and Jacob Osei Yeboah, had all called Mr Akufo-Addo to congratulate him.
In the evening of December 9, no sooner did the news come through that President Mahama had called Mr Akufo-Addo to congratulate him than the country erupted into celebration, without even waiting for the EC to make the formal announcement, which Mrs Osei finally did at about 8.45 p.m.
It has been observed that Mr Akufo-Addo is the first President in the Fourth Republic whose first name is not John. We have had: (Jerry) John Rawlings, John Kufuor, John Atta Mills and the incumbent, John Mahama.
For those looking for ‘firsts’, when Mr Akufo-Addo is sworn into office, he will also be the first to occupy the presidential seat following in the footsteps of his father, Edward. Mr Edward Akufo-Addo, a former Chief Justice, was the ceremonial President of Ghana’s Second Republic, from 1970 to January 13, 1972.
Interestingly, the name ‘Nana Akufo-Addo’ has long been such a familiar one on our political scene that ‘Nana Addo’, the form of the name used by his family and close friends, is the name that rolls off everybody’s tongue, even in formal communication. Surely, this will have to change!
From now till the swearing-in, I suggest that the proper way to address him is Mister Akufo-Addo or President-elect; and after that of course it should not be the overly-familiar ‘Nana’, but President Akufo-Addo; or just Mister President.