At long last, Nana Akufo Addo vice presidential candidate saga has ended and it is Dr. Muhammadu Bawumia, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana. The lead story of the Daily Graphic says the National Executive Committee NEC, of the New Patriotic Party NPP, has endorsed his nomination. The NEC took the decision late last night after Nana Addo had formally presented him to the national executive after a marathon meeting in Accra. The paper shows an elated Bawumia shortly after he has been endorsed.
The Ghanaian Times was unable to capture the endorsement but takes its readers through the anxiety journalists had to go through for hours as the national executive was holed in at the meeting to endorse the candidate.
The Public Agenda was right on track to pick the Bawumia endorsement. It goes the extra mile to publish a profile of the Deputy Governor now turned politician.
Parliament’s approval of the much talked about Ghana Telecom GT, sale deal is picked by the two national dailies as front page stories.
Elsewhere in the Times is a report that the Electoral Commission is considering opening the voters register all-year round to enable potential and eligible voters to register. The Director of Election, Albert Arhin who disclosed this to the paper said this will help reduce the backlog of eligible voters.
The Graphic reports a drama at the on-going congress of the Trade Union Congress TUC, in Kumasi when the Union turned away a representative of the National Democratic Congress NDC, when it was his turn to outline the party’s plans for Ghanaian workers when given the mandate in the 2008 elections. Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, the NDC representative was turned away because the letters of invitation specifically stated the forum was for presidential candidates. Nevertheless, apart from Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom of the Convention People’s Party CPP, none of the presidential candidates turned up for the programme. The national daily, Times turns to a human interest and fascinating story. The Times reports the arrest of a man dressed like a female commercial sex worker. The man-woman, Daniel Twum, was picked up by a potential client, Kwame Boateng, a 29 year old driver who was apparently fooled into believing that his catch was a woman dressed in skirt and blouse with long blond wig, wearing a necklace, bracelets and artificial nails, the young man sported perfectly shaped eyebrows and lipstick. The story is picked by the Daily Guide on its front page.
THE EDITORIALS The Ghanaian Times believes the apology rendered by the Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Djan is significant because it is an admission that the Commission could have done better. The paper says it is also a tacit admission that those in the target groups who failed in their bid to register deserve consideration. It hopes that in the next few days the EC will come out with a plan to enable the affected people, to be enfranchised.
The Daily Guide also applauds the Chairman of the Electoral Commission EC, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Djan for apologizing to the nation of his disappointment to the target groups of the exercise. The paper notes that the EC failed miserably having assured Ghanaians that they have been well resourced by government to conduct the December elections. The Daily Guide appeals to all political parties, not to see the December elections as a do and die affair, and realise that, Ghana should not be engulfed in flames because of politics.
The Daily Graphic urges the Accra Metropolitan Assembly AMA, and Ghana Private Road Transport Union GPRTU, to organise educational programmes to sensitise drivers to the dangers of drunk-driving. The paper says, education on the dangers of drunk-driving must not preclude the vendors of alcoholic beverages as they need to understand the dangers associated with the work. In the papers view, there is the need to emphasise the fact that an alcoholic vendor can also suffer loss as a result of road accidents be it themselves or their relatives.
