Bawumia picks ‘former MoE’ NAPO as 2024 election running mate
Vice-president and flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the 2024 general election, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has announced former Minister of Education, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh as his running mate for the upcoming polls.
This comes after Bawumia presented his choice of running mate (Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh) to the National Council of the New Patriotic Party (NPP: Development in Freedom) for their consideration in line with the NPP constitution.
“I had the honour and privilege to present my choice of running mate (Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh) to the National Council of the New Patriotic Party (NPP: Development in Freedom) for their consideration in line with the NPP constitution.
I thank members of the National Council for their unanimous and emphatic endorsement of the astute and brilliant Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh as my running mate. To God be the glory,” he said in a post sighted by Thisterm.com.
The former Education Minister, current Minister in Charge of Energy and Manhyia South Member of Parliament, Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh was picked as running mate over the Minister of Education, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum.
Profile of Mathew Opoku Prempeh
Matthew Opoku Prempeh, born 23 May 1968 is the current Minister of Energy and represents Manhyia South constituency in Kumasi.
He started his basic education at KNUST Primary and continued to Prempeh College in Kumasi, Ashanti Region of Ghana, for his middle school education.
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 and at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he studied Leadership and Government(certificate course). In 2002, he pursued postgraduate training in surgery in the UK (MRCS).
Prior to parliament, he served as CEO of Keyedmap Security Services Limited from 2004 to 2009 and as a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of the United Kingdom from 1999 to 2003. He is also a medical doctor/ health work.
He was appointed by President Nana Akufo-Addo on 10 January 2017 to serve as Minister for Education in Ghana. He served in that role for 4 years until 6 January 2021 when the tenure of the president and his ministers ended.
Prempeh contributed to the educational sector such as improving the infrastructure, promoting vocational and technical education (TVET), and leading the government’s flagship Free Senior High School programme.
He was adjudged the best Minister in Ghana in 2017 and 2019. He was also the recipient of the 2020 Harvard Ministerial Medal of Achievement. In May 2021, the University of Education Winneba conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate Degree.
In 2021, His Excellency Nana Akuffo-Addo, after being re-elected as President, named Dr. Mattew Opoku Prempeh as Minister of Energy after he had previously served as the Minister of Education for President Nana Akuffo-Addo’s first term.