How Ghana ruling party fall, lose 2024 election to opposition

Ghana pipo don vote to remove dia ruling goment wia don dey power for eight years.

Since di kontri begin dey do democratic elections in di fourth republic from 1992, no party in goment bin dey power for more dan eight years.

Di constitution bin provide say evri goment term na four years; but since 1992, pipo don dey retain di goment for at least anoda four years, even though on some occasions like under ex-president John Mahama, di pipo no give am anoda eight years afta im first term.

Na so di goment New patriotic party (NPP) bin try to create history to become di first party wey go dey power more dan eight years – dia slogan for di campaign na "to break di eight."

For di opposition party di National democratic congress (NDC), anoda four years for di goment go be disaster for Ghana pipo, as di economy dey in crisis.

But di goment insist say despite di Russia-Ukraine war and covid 19, dem lead di kontri well wia dem create jobs for pipo.

Many sabi pipo and Ghanaians don fire di goment say dem no dey care about di way pipo don dey suffer for di kontri wit cost of living crisis, high inflation and unemployment.

Political researcher Mussa Dankwah wey bin conduct surveys bifor di election tok say "di state of di economy cause di NPP goment to lose dis election."

"Pipo dey suffer well well, hunger don catch many pipo and odas don vex sake of di way goment manage di kontri for di last four years," oga Mussa Dankwa explain.

Many months bifor di vote, oga Mussa im research group Global info analytics publish monthly surveys wey show say di ruling party go lose di election wit big gap.

Di goment and oda party pipo bin trash di surveys.

Tok tok pesin for di Dr Bawumia campaign Dennis Miracles Aboagye tok say "which pipo dis researchers don dey speak to? Wetin be dia methodology? Nothing dey inside dat survey, e dey show say dem no do di poll well."

Di goment despite all di problems of di economy don use free senior high school education as dia main campaign message. Dis na policy dem implement for dia first term in 2017 afta dem win di 2016 elections.

Even tho di policy get plenti challenges, some sabi pipo say na good initiative, as many pipo neva dey continu senior high school education sake of dem no get moni.

Beyond di free senior high school policy campaign message, di goment party also tok say dem carry digitalization come, wey make pipo fit to do many transactions online – but pipo say dia main problem na to afford food and basic tins.

Dem also promise to build 111 hospitals across di 16 regions of di kontri. For di last two weeks di goment tok say some of di hospitals don dey ready wia di president commission dem.

Dem promise to complete di rest of di hospitals if di pipo don vote for dem for dis election, but di Ghanaian pipo gat oda ideas.

Tins wey vex Ghanaians about di goment

Economic crisis: Ghana don experience dia worst economic crisis in history, according to many sabi pipo. Di kontri witness di highest inflation in 21 years – 54% in 2023, wia e don hang around 40% for di early part of 2024, bifor di finance ministry tok say e reduce to 22% in June. Plenti credit rating agencies don downgrade di economy.

Di kontri total debt don pass $55bn. Dis force goment to run to di international monetary fund IMF to beg for $3bn bailout. Because of dis tins, exchange rate bin rise, price of evritin don shoot up, wia pipo no fit to afford basic tins like – food, water, shelter, fuel and oda tins. But wenever di pipo don complain about di crisis, goment pipo go tok say dem solve di problem. Na so dem tok say dem go look dia life and vote for di elections.

Plenty taxes: betting tax, covid tax, electronic transfer levy (e-levy) and odas

Ghanaians till now still dey pay 1% covid 19 levy on di supply of goods and services, way afta di pandemic don end for di kontri. On top of dis tax, pipo don dey pay 2.5% national health insurance levy (NHIL), 2.5% Getfund levy.

In 2023, di kontri don pass one law wey dey impose 10% withholding tax on top of bet and lottery winnings.

Dis tax bin vex young pipo sake of dem say na so dem fit survive for di economy, without jobs. In 2022, di kontris parliament approve anoda 1.5% (later dem review am to 1%) electronic transfer levy – wey go charge dis amount on top any transaction wia pipo go do for dia mobile e-cash wallet. Many pipo don kick against dis tax including opposition lawmakers for parliament, but dem no get di numbers for di house of legislator to shoot down di law, wia di goment party push am through as dem be majority for parliament.

Unemployment: Many young pipo complain about lack of jobs, even though di goment always tok say dem create millions of jobs in di last eight years. For many pre-election surveys, unemployment na one of di top three tins wey young pipo bin tok about as dia major wahala. In 2023, di annual Ghana household income and expenditure survey don put di rate of unemployment at 14.7%.

Dis show say di number of pipo wey dey unemployed between 15-35 years don shoot up from about 1.2 million to 1.3million for dat year.

One NDC supporter for Tamale in di kontri northern region tok BBC afta di elections say "today be like we don gain independence again, John Mahama don take us away from di oppressors."

Corruption: Under di NPP goment, tori of ministers and oda officials wey bin dey sign wetin civil society groups like IMANI Africa, Citizens movement against corruption and odas describe as bad deals, don plenty. Dis CSOs don complain about how di president bin dey appoint "family and friends" into many goment offices wey dem dey carry contracts give dia party pipo. Di opposition NDC in August dis year for one press conference tok say goment bin give contracts to pipo without going through di public procurement process.

Bad projects: One ogbonge project wey vex pipo well well na di national cathedral project. Di project wia be di president im personal pledge to God now don become goment project.

But afta three years, e don comot say goment don pump Ghana pipo dia moni to di tune of $58m for dis project wey neva pass di foundation level as at now.

Some ogbonge men of God wey be members on top di national cathedral board even bin resign – including Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, Bishop Dag Heward-Mills and Rev Professor Simon Omenyo. Dem resign sake of di goment refuse at di time to audit di moni wey dem pump into di project. Bifor dem go begin di project, many Ghanaians say dem no want am sake of e neva be priority at a time di kontri dey suffer economic crisis. But di goment insist say dem go do am.

Illegal mining (galamsey): Under di NPP goment, di illegal mining wahala increase. Many pipo enta di kontri waterbodies and forest reserves wia dem don dey mine gold illegally.

A former minister for environment Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng wey be di chairman of di interministerial committee on illegal mining (IMCIM), write one report wey show say goment pipo bin dey involved for di illegal act.

Inside dat 36-page report wia im title, "report on di work of di interministerial committee on illegal mining - di way forward", di former minister allege say some officials, party pipo and private citizens bin dey involved.

Di attorney general even though im prosecute some foreigners and young boys wia dem arrest for galamsey sites, neva show interest to deal wit di goment pipo wia dey involve, di citizens movement against corruption bin tok say dem dey disappointed in di president say im no act on di mata.

Na so young pipo stage plenty ogbonge demonstrations say make goment stop di illegal mining – wia some of di labour unions bin go on strike ova di mata.

NPP massively lose parliamentary seats

Di goment party don lose plenty parliamentary seats for dis election – some of di goment ogbonge ministers of state lose dia parliamentary seats.

Pre-election survey wia global info analytics bin do show say for di party im stronghold, dem go lose many votes wia some pipo neva go vote sake of dem no dey happy wit di party and di goment.

"Di poll bin show say Dr Bawumia don underperform for di NPP areas, wey among di floating voters (54%) of dem don dey lean towards John Mahama, wia only 21% support Bawumia," Mussa Dankwah explain.

Im add say "from di survey, many NPP wia vex wit dia party and di goment bin dey remove diaserf from di candidate Bawumia. Di poll also bin show say Mahama fit get 46% of votes of first-time voters and Bawumia 38%."

Di poll also find say John Mahama go win 54% of votes for di key swing regions like Accra, Western and Central compared to Bawumia's 34%.

Na so tins come happun for di election proper.

In di central region for example, certified results from di electoral commission bin show say John Mahama win di region wit 562,620 votes compared to Bawumia 382,749 votes – a difference of 179,871 votes.

For di 2020 elections in di goment NPP win di central region, wit 613,804 votes wia NDC get 538,829.

But for dis election na di NDC win am wit almost b180,000 votes

Di NDC also win di western region wey be anoda swing region. In 2020, di NPP win di western region wit 439,724 votes wia di NDC get 398,549 votes.

But di 2024 vote, di NDC win wit 423,245 votes wia di NPP drop drastically to 275,231 votes.

Di goment party also bin lose some parliamentary seats for dat region, wia include goment ministers like di tourism minister Andrew Egyapa Mercer.

For di eastern region wia be di stronghold of di NPP, dem lose grounds for dia even though dem win di region.

Di oda region wia dey fit turn tins around na di greater accra region. In 2020, di opposition NDC win dis region - NDC get 1,326,489 votes wia di NPP get 1,253,179 – a difference of 73,310 votes.

For di 2024 elections di NDC bin win di Greater Accra region again wit ogbonge margin of 1,260,832 and di goment party NPP bin get ova 685,000.

Also na dis region wia plenty of di goment ministers lose dia parliamentary seats like di health minister Dr Bernard Okoe-Boye, communications minister Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Sanitation minister Lydia Alhassan, Interior Minister Henry Quartey.

But results of di 2024 poll don dey show say di NDC bin retain all dia 4 seats wia dem win at least 6 odas, according to di party.

Meanwhile di two leading parties bin dey challenge results of at least two of di seats.

In 2020, di NPP win di eastern region wia be di home region of di President Nana Akufo-Addo wit 752,061 as di NDC get 470,099 votes.

But for di 2024 poll, di NPP get 493,234 votes wia di NDC get 453,234 votes, a difference of 40,000 votes, compared to the gap of ova 280,000 votes in 2020.

Ghana na di latest kontri wia ruling party don lose election for Africa dis year

Dis year for African politics don see five kontris wia di ruling party lose elections.

Dis trend also don bring opposition parties to goment wit victories for Botswana, Mauritius, Senegal and the self-declared republic of Somaliland.

Apart from dis results, almost evri election wey don happun for di region dis year under democratic conditions don see di ruling party lose plenty seats for dia parliament also, Ghana own no be different.

Di trend of African kontris wey dia goment don lose election dis year na sake of many factors like;

- Di economic crisis

- corruption

- opposition parties wia don dey well-coordinated