Bawumia has not approached Ken Agyapong for running mate

The credibility of the Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong has been brought to question over claims he was offered an opportunity to be running mate to Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

The New Patriotic Party(NPP) flag-bearer aspirant who devoted his Kumasi Edition of Showdown Walk to attacking the personality of the Vice President and some leading members of the party, has been dared to substantiate the allegations.

While addressing patrons of the walk on Saturday September 30, 2023, the loudmouth businessman was quoted to have said “I have had offers, and among them is my stepping down to be a running mate for Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, but I’ve rejected it. A number of the party elders have reached out, but my love for Ghana supersedes any offer they present to me”

Mr. Kennedy Agyapong who has over the last few months gained notoriety in making wild allegations in his usual style, failed to mention names and venues where those overtures were made.

In a sharp rebuttal to the claim, the Campaign team of Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia indicated that there has never been an attempt by the Vice President’s camp to bribe him to pull out of the New Patriotic Party’s presidential race and accept a running mate position.

In a statement signed by Dr Gideon Boako, spokesperson for the Vice President, the Dr Bawumia Campaign team said no such advances were made at Kennedy Agyapong as he claimed.

“We wish to state in unequivocal terms that the Bawumia Campaign team has not approached Kennedy Agyapong for such a running mate offer, nor have we assigned any member of the team to approach him for the same,” the statement said.

The Vice President’s campaign team further stated that “It is also not true as alleged by Kennedy Agyapong that Dr. Bawumia is collapsing the party through intimidation. The unity of our party has been of great concern to candidate Dr. Bawumia. It is in light of such concern that he refrains from responding to unwarranted attacks by others in the contest and has cautioned his supporters against responding to such provocative attacks. His strategy has been to persuade delegates to support his bid. This he does, by laying his vision for the party and country”.

While admonishing all stakeholder particularly presidential hopefuls to be mindful of their utterance in the interest of party unity, Veep’s campaign team maintained that the contest for flagbearer in the NPP is an internal one, and all actors, particularly the aspirants must be guided by the core values of the NPP, which include but are not limited to truth, decorum, and respect for one another.

As the party gears up for its presidential primaries on November 4, 2023, stakes are high as Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia is highly tipped to emerge victorious to lead the governing party in the 2024 elections.