Ghana President Mahama to name VP today

Barring any last minute hitch, President John Dramani Mahama will send communication on his choice of Vice President to the Speaker of Parliament today.

So far officials at the Presidency are tight lipped on who is likely to be the choice of the President.

However, addressing members of the diplomatic corps in Accra Monday, President Mahama hinted that his choice of Vice President will be made public this week.

He told the envoys that today would exactly be one week after the demise of the late President and noted that following wide consultations, the name will be presented to Parliament this week.

Nonetheless, the names of some personalities have come up strongly as favourites for the position. They include Dr Kwesi Botchwey, a former Minister of Finance; Ms Hannah Tetteh, the current Minister of Trade and Industry; Mr Samuel  Ofosu-Ampofo, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development.

Others are  Mr P.V. Obeng, the Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC); Mr Goosie Tanoh, a leading member of the party; Mr Kwesi Ahwoi, the  Minister of Food and Agriculture, and Mr Sylvester Mensah, the Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Authority.

Reports indicate that the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Mr Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, Mr Ford Karmel. Volta Regional Minister and Mike Hammah, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, could spring surprises.

Sources in government confirmed to graphic.com.gh in Accra Monday that the President will make the selection of the Vice President in consultation with all the major stakeholders in  the NDC and would communicate same to Parliament today.

The position of the Vice President became vacant following the elevation of the then Vice President John Mahama to the high office of the President after  the death of  President Mills at the 37 Military Hospital on Tuesday July 24, 2012..

Article 60 (10) of the 1992 Constitution states that “the Vice President shall, upon assuming office as President under clause 6 of this article nominate a person to the office of Vice President subject to approval by Parliament.”

Article 60 (1) of the 1992 Constitution also states that there shall be a Vice President of Ghana who shall perform such functions as may be assigned to him by this Constitution or by the President.

All the candidates have solid backgrounds but Dr Botchwey has been mentioned as the front runner with Goozie Tanoh and Hannah Tetteh likely to spring surprises.

A former government official and Professor of Practice in Development Economics at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy of Tufts University, Dr Botchwey was Finance Minister from 1982 to 1995. He was appointed by Jerry Rawlings to assist in stabilising Ghana’s collapsed economy.

Mr  Ahwoi is Agriculture Minister. He attended Prempeh College in Kumasi where he obtained his GCE Ordinary Level in 1965. His sixth form education was at Saint Augustine’s College in Cape Coast where he passed the GCE Advanced Level in 1967. His undergraduate education was at the University of Cape Coast where he obtained the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics, Geography and Education.

Between 1980 and 1981, he studied for the Post Graduate Certificates in Budgeting and Financial Management and from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration. between 1985 and 1986, he studied for the Postgraduate Certificate in Planning and Resource Management at the University of Maryland, College Park, United States.

Ms Hanna Tetteh is a barrister and politician. She is the current Trade Minister. She also served as a Member of Parliament between 2001 and 2005.

In 2008, she returned into politics, becoming the communications director of John Atta Mills’ campaign during the December 2008 presidential elections. Ms Tetteh is a director of Accra Hearts of Oak FC.

Mr Paul Victor Obeng, popularly known as P.V. Obeng, is a graduate of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

He was a student leader and after graduation worked at Mankoadze Fisheries until the 31st December Revolution when he was appointed the Co-ordinating Secretary of the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) government under Flt Lt Jerry John Rawlings.

He was later appointed a member of the PNDC and when the NDC won the1992 elections, he was appointed the Presidential Advisor on Governmental Affairs.

Under the erstwhile Kufuor administration, he was appointed the chairman of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC).

Goosie Augustus Obuadum Tanoh is a politician, who holds a Bachelor of Law and Master of Law degrees from the Universities of Ghana and Northwestern University Law School in Chicago, Illinois, United States. He was a presidential candidate of the National Reform Party in 2000.

He served on various finance and economic boards in Ghana, particularly as the Executive Director of Finance and Administration of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation from 1989 to 1992.

For his part, Mr Hammah holds an MBA in Finance from the Central University College, a Bachelor of Science Degree in Building Technology, Quantity Surveying option from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. He was Principal Consultant for Strategic Heritage Service (2004 to date); Managing Director for two firms, Ebonabe General Construction and Suppliers Limited and Strats Services Limited.

Between 1996-2000, he was elected a MP for Effutu Constituency on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress and was appointed the Deputy Minister for Roads and Transport in charge of Railways, Aviation and Maritime. He also served as member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Privileges.

He was re-elected a MP for Effutu and served on two Select Committees: Deputy Ranking Member — Committee on Roads and Transport; Deputy Ranking Member  — Committee of Holding of Office of Profit. He was also a friend of the Select Committee on Finance and Agriculture.

Mr Ford Kamel, is a Banker and was the managing director of North Volta Rural Bank Limited. He won the 2008 parliamentary election on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress to represent the Buem Constituency.

The late President Mills appointed him a Deputy Minister of Lands and Forestry, a position he held until he was recently appointed the Volta Regional Minister

The Chief Executive of NHIA, Sylvester A. Mensah, assumed duty on June 15, 2009.

Before joining the NHIA, Mr. Mensah was the Head of Public Sector Banking with the then Intercontinental Bank, Ghana.

Mr. Mensah holds an MBA from the University of Leicester, UK. He is also a graduate of the University of Ghana Business School where he obtained a Degree in Administration as well as a Diploma in Public Administration. He holds an additional Diploma in Political Economy from Cottbus Political College in Germany.

Between January, 1997 and January 2001, he was the Member of Parliament for Dade Kotopon Constituency in Accra. Mr. Mensah had earlier served as the Greater Accra Regional Director of the then National Mobilisation Programme from 1987 to 1996.

Source: Daily Graphic