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Mustapha Gbande, the Deputy General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), has stated that the appointment of Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang as John Mahama’s running mate in the 2024 election gives credence to affirmative action.
The NDC flag bearer, former President Mahama, retained his 2020 running mate, Prof. Opoku-Agyemang. The selection was officially announced at the party’s Adabraka office on March 7, 2024.
The selection of Prof. Jane Opoku-Agyemang has been widely welcomed amongst the rank and file of the party.
Speaking on TV3’s Ghana Tonight programme on Thursday, March 7, Mustapha Gbande lauded the decision by the party’s leader, indicating that the ‘John and Jane’ ticket is the best pair for the NDC going into the December 7 elections.
“I think that this is a very fortunate pair, this is the best pair, particularly when you have a woman coming on board,” he said, adding that “it gives credence to the affirmative action advocacy.”
Gbande further stressed that the NDC has actualised the bill, which is yet to become law.
“If you check the pattern of our population, women are certainly more. If in 2020 the card of a woman didn’t matter, particularly this time that we are bleeding as a nation where parents are suffering, where children are suffering, high cost of standard of living, high cost of shelter, high cost of goods and services,” he said.
He also criticized the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government for refusing to take responsibility for the bad economic conditions of the country. He emphasized that the NDC is a better alternative under the leadership of John Mahama and Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang.
He said, “At this time Ghanaians are expecting a leader should live by their word, a leader says what he can do, a leader takes responsibility of national problems. Currently, President Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia are not contemplating as to who takes responsibility for the mess.”
Affirmative Action is a set of measures targeted at protected groups in order to enable or encourage members of those groups to overcome or minimise their disadvantages.
The Affirmative Action Bill was first drafted in 2011. It has been identified as the best option to address gender equality and mitigate the age-old gender imbalance in the Ghanaian public sector. However, over 10 years later, the bill has yet to be passed into law.
