‘Workaholic’ Bawumia Sleeps Only 4 Hours – Mustapha Hamid

The Minister of Information, Mustapha Hamid, has disclosed that Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia gets only three to four hours of sleep a day, and spends the rest of the time working for the people of Ghana.

Speaking to Citi News on Thursday at the Kotoka International Airport on the sidelines of Bawumia’s return to Ghana after being on a medical leave for the past 12 days, Hamid said he was hopeful the Vice President will have enough rest so that he does not break down.

“We know that he’s a workaholic; he’s been working so hard. This is a man who sleeps just about three or four hours out of 24 hours, but we hope that this time in spite of the enormous work that has to be done, that he will be urged to slow down a bit and take a rest,” he added.

Dr. Bawumia, who’s the Head of the government’s Economic Management Team, left Ghana for the United Kingdom on Friday, January 20; after the Presidency revealed that he had taken ill a day before on January 19, and had undergone medical tests.

According to a statement signed by the Chief of Staff, Akosua Frema Osei-Opare, the trip became necessary following the advice of Dr. Bawumia’s doctors.

The Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, later explained that, the decision to fly Dr. Bawumia to the UK was to ensure that he was kept away from visitors who may disturb his rest and recuperation period.

The controversies

On January 27, during his medical leave, a video emerged of the Vice President taking a stroll on the streets of London with his wife, Samira Bawumia.

At a point in the video, the Second Family stopped to interact with a Ghanaian national who ran over to greet them.

Whilst many were excited to see the Vice President in the video, others suggested it was stage-managed to give an impression that he was well, and that government was, in reality, concealing the true details of his health status from the public.

Some likened the video to the incident where the late President Atta Mills who appeared physically ill, at one-time trotted at the Kotoka International Airport when he had returned from a trip outside, to give an impression that he was healthy.

Others later shifted the argument to the fact that, it was not prudent for the Vice President to have been strolling the streets of London without security, a claim that was dismissed by some government spokespersons.

The video also came at a time the Minority in Parliament had called for full disclosure on the health status of the Vice President.

The Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, however, described the Minority’s call as “hypocritical and preposterous”.

Bawumia returns

He, however, returned to the country on February 1, 2018, where he received a rousing welcome from President Akufo-Addo and his wife as well as some government functionaries.

Mustapha Hamid, who could not hide his joy over Bawumia’s return said “We are all very excited that he’s come back. He is healed and hearty, at least that is what we can see and we believe that he’s going to come back and continue his work again.”