The interpretation of an aspect of the recent Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) report over the possibility of the National Democratic Congress winning the 2024 election became the point of a debate between Kwame Sefa Kayi, Nana Akomea and Kwesi Pratt on Peace FM Kokrokoo program.

In the report, the EIU observed that the NDC was going to win the polls but would have to do that with a new man in the saddle.

“The next parliamentary and presidential elections are due in 2024. Under constitutionally mandated term limits, the incumbent president, Mr. Akufo-Addo, cannot run for a third term. The former president, John Mahama, is reportedly considering running again, but we expect the opposition NDC to try to revitalise its prospects with a fresh candidate,” the EIU said.

Kwame Sefa Kayi and Nana Akomea of the New Patriotic Party understood it to mean that the only way the NDC was going to win the polls was by ditching Mahama for a new candidate.

Nana Akomea said, “they (EIU) said if elections were held today, NDC would win but their chances of winning would be better without John Mahama. This is what I got from their report. According to them, John Mahama is not the best candidate for the NDC.

Pratt interjected “That’s not what the report said.”

Nana Akomea then went on to repeat and explain what he said earlier.

Pratt, also read the same aspect of the report; but concluded that it did not mean that NDC could only win the polls with any candidate beside John Mahama.

Sefa Kayi came in and said: “their expectation is that (the NDC needs) to revitalize their prospect, they need a fresh candidate”.

But Kwesi Pratt did not agree and revisited the quote again, giving various interpretations to it.

The argument dragged for more than ten minutes with Pratt disputing the viewpoints of Kwame Sefa Kayi and Nana Akomea.

The EIU report which was released on April 19, 2022 identified a number of issues which could cripple the ‘break the 8’ ambition of the New Patriotic Party.

“Our baseline forecast is that ongoing public dissatisfaction with the slow pace of improvements in governance—such as infrastructure development, job creation and easing of corruption—will trigger anti-incumbency factors and push the electorate to seek a change. The NDC therefore stands a reasonable chance of winning the 2024 elections”, parts of the EIU report mentioned.

The NDC reacted to the report with a reaffirmation of their belief in John Dramani Mahama to lead them in the elections.

Edudzi Tamakloe, a member of the legal team of the party said they will take the risk of heading into the elections with Mahama.

“We like to take a calculated risk with former president John Dramani Mahama who polled over two million votes in the 2020 general elections,” he said on Accra-based Okay FM today, Wednesday, April 20, 2022