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The National Executive Council (NEC) of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has unanimously approved Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh as the running mate for Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for the 2024 general elections.
The party highlighted that Dr Opoku Prempeh meets all the criteria for the running mate position, which led to his unanimous approval.
Speaking at the Alisa Hotel on Thursday, July 4, the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, emphasised that Dr Opoku Prempeh, also known as Napo, is a proven achiever.
Frimpong further noted that the Manhyia South Member of Parliament possesses the qualities needed to strengthen the party’s ticket and secure victory in the upcoming election.
He stated that Dr. Opoku Prempeh has demonstrated his incorruptibility and is known for his bold views aimed at the collective good of the country.
The party expressed confidence that Dr Opoku Prempeh’s capabilities and integrity will be instrumental in their campaign for the 2024 general elections.
Before his selection, several names were floated as potential running mates which included Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum.
Other notable figures considered for the role include Apostle Opoku Onyinah, former Chairman of the Pentecost Church-Ghana, and Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of Agriculture and MP for Abetifi Constituency, Ablekuma West MP; Ursula Owusu Ekuful, Chief of Staff; Frema Akosua Osei Opare.
However, several surveys tipped NAPO as he is popularly known as the preferred candidate among NPP members.
Meanwhile, Dr Bawumia is expected to make an official announcement of his running mate to the public on Tuesday, July 9, 2024.
Early life and education
Matthew Opoku Prempeh was born on May 23, 1968, in Ashanti New Town, a suburb of Kumasi, and hails from Pakyi No. 2 in the Ashanti Region.
He started his basic education at KNUST Primary School and proceeded to Prempeh College for his middle school education, all in Kumasi.
He studied Human Biology and Medicine at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and completed his MB CHB in 1994. He continued with post-graduate studies in MSc. Clinical Epidemiology at the Netherlands Institute of Health Sciences in 1998. He further pursued postgraduate training in surgery in the UK.
Career and political life
After working with the National Health Service in the United Kingdom for some time, he returned to Ghana in 2005 to pursue a career in business and more importantly in politics. He successfully became the Member of Parliament for Manhyia in 2009. Before entering Parliament after winning the Manhyia South seat in 2008, he was the chief executive officer of Keyedmap Security Services Limited from 2004 to 2009. He also served as a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of the United Kingdom from 1999 to 2003.
He was elected to Parliament in 2008 on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party. He was re-elected with 35,958 votes, or 87.17% of the votes in the 2016 parliamentary elections and also won the 2020 contest overwhelmingly. Ahead of the 2012 elections, the constituency was divided into two, and in those elections, he won the newly created Manhyia South constituency, which he retained in 2016 and 2020.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo appointed him as Minister of Education during his first term. As Education Minister, Napo, as he is affectionately called, spearheaded the implementation of the famous Free Senior High School policy. Under Dr. Prempeh, the successful implementation of the government’s flagship Free Senior High School (FSHS) policy saw the country’s SHS population leap from 800,000 in 2016 to 1.2 million by January 2021.
Prior to his appointment as Minister for Education in 2017, he was a member of the Defence and Interior Committee and the Appointments Committee.
The President appointed him during his second term in 2021 to head the Ministry of Energy after the NPP retained power in the 2020 elections.
Becoming NPP’s running mate
Matthew Opoku Prempeh became one of the frontrunners for the NPP’s running mate with the party’s flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia engaging President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday, June 25 at the Jubilee House.
His name was submitted for consideration during the said meeting which was approved by the President.
A final decision was eventually taken by the party’s national council at Alisa Hotel on Thursday, July 4.
