Two NPP women named as possible running mates to Dr Bawumia

Who will it be?

And questions linger about who will pair with the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, and even when that decision will be made.

Now, more than ever, especially as the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has named its running mate, election and political watchers on both sides are anxious about the details of that announcement.

Long before Dr. Bawumia was elected as the NPP flagbearer, several names, most of them men, had been mentioned for the vacant role.

For the second time in a row, the NDC has named a woman, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, as its running mate, which refocuses some people’s conversations about the chances of a female NPP running mate.

So far, two major names have emerged and have continued to enjoy considerable media attention and political acceptance.

But as the decision on who will partner with the sitting Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, in his race to give the New Patriotic Party its historic target of becoming the first political party in Ghana to break and surpass the country’s current 8-year political cycle. GhanaWeb puts the spotlight on the two female names highly-tipped for the running mate slot.

Akosua Frema Osei-Opare, the Chief of Staff:

Osei-Opare’s name for the candidature does not come as a surprise for many reasons. Above all of those, it remains the fact that she is not a novice in politics in the country, having a track record of rising through the ranks.

According to her profile available, Akosua Frema Osei-Opare is a Ghanaian politician, economist, and member of the New Patriotic Party. She is the current and first female Chief of Staff of the Republic of Ghana.

She was born on June 6, 1948, and hails from Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in home science from the University of Ghana and a master’s in food science from the University of Guelph.

From 1976 to 1982, she was a lecturer at the University of Ghana’s Department of Food Science and later became head of the department. She also worked on the Women in Fisheries project for the United Nations, working in various capacities in Ethiopia, the Congo, Uganda, and Namibia.

In the 2004 general elections, she was elected the Member of Parliament for the Ayawaso West-Wuogon constituency in the Greater Accra Region.

She has been Ghana’s Chief of Staff since President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo took office in 2017.

By inference, she has also worked directly in government with Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia since 2017.

Irene Naa Torshie Addo, Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund

Another prominent name linked to the NPP’s running mate position is Naa Torshie Addo, a former Member of Parliament (Tema West).

Born on September 30, 1970, she hails from Osu, Accra, in the Greater Accra Region.

She is a professional lawyer and holds an LLM (Gender and Development Studies) from the University of Warwick in 1999.

She represented the NPP in Parliament until 2016, when fellow party colleague Carlos Ahenkorah unseated her.

She was also the Deputy Ambassador to the Embassy of Ghana in Washington, DC, USA, before assuming the position of MP.

She is a Christian and is married with two children.