Mahama officially confirms: I Shall Run, Win In 2024

Former President John Mahama has officially confirmed he has firmed up his mind to contest the 2024 presidential elections on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

He said he would contest the party’s presidential primaries and if given the nod, would go ahead and win the 2024 presidential elections with a good margin of victory to rescue Ghana from its current economic hardships.

John Mahama is the former President of Ghana to become an aspiring President in the Fourth Republic.

John Mahama made his 2024 intentions officially known on Tuesday February 21, when some members of the Minority Caucus paid a visit to him at his Cantonments residence in Accra.

The Minority Caucus had visited John Mahama ostensibly to assure him of their support if he intends to contest the 2024 race.

Former Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, former NDC Campaign Manager for the 2020 general elections, Professor Joshua Alabi and former Information Minister, Kofi Totobi Quakyi were part of the persons present when the Minority Caucus called on John Mahama on Tuesday.

Apart from John Mahama, aged 64, one other person who has openly declared his intention to become presidential candidate of the NDC is the 80-year-old man who no single strand of gray hair, Dr. Kwabena Duffour who would be 82 years by the time the 2024 elections would be held.

It is widely reported that all Members of Parliament on the ticket of the NDC have already  declared support for John Mahama and indeed some of them have made this known through media interviews.

Mahama is arguably the most popular among the wannabe NDC flag-bearers and he commands a cult following in the party and beyond.

At the last presidential elections in 2020, John Mahama polled some got 6,214,889 votes representing 47.366 per cent of total valid votes cast but lost to Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), who polled 6,730,413 votes which represents 51.295 percent of the total valid votes cast.

The incumbent NPP is seeking a third term in a row at the presidency, something no political party has ever done and the task looks even more challenging with the current economic stagnation the country is enduring, and the continuous nature of it.

Perhaps it was planned, perhaps it was purely coincidental but just a few days before John Mahama told the Minority Caucus that he has firmed up his mind to have his picture on the 2024 ballot sheets, pressure started to mount on him to contest.

All 33 Constituency Chairmen of the NDC in the Greater Accra Region has unanimously declared support for John Mahama and pledged to pay the filing fee of GH¢500,000 for him is he agrees to contest.

A few days ago, a group, known as ‘Get Mahama Elected Action Group’ (GMEAG) comprising former Ministers, deputy Ministers, former Ambassadors, former Chief Executives of Government agencies, former Board Members of Government agencies former Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives and DCEs stormed John Mahama’s residence and presented to him a banker’s draft of GHC30,000 which they said he should use to pay for the nomination forms for the flag-bearer primaries.

Earlier this week, some four unions namely the Motor Riders Union, True Drivers Union, Concerned Drivers Union and Abossey Okai Spare-part Dealers Association  presented a petition to the office of John Mahama and called on him to  contest for the Presidency in the 2024 general elections.

“Since you left, everything has been in shambles, we can’t even buy fuel to work to make ends meet. Things have been so tough that we can’t wait to see you come to rescue us. We are by this petition asking you to endlessly consider the points raised and do the needful by heeding to the call of all Ghanaians who are yearning for a change”, Setsofia Quashie, Spokesperson of the Motor Riders Association, noted when the four unions presented the petition.

The NDC has said it would hold its presidential primary on Saturday  May 13, 2023 but open nominations from February 22 to February 24 2023.