Opinions of Wednesday, 20 May 2020
Columnist: Collins Owusu
What is this excitment within folks in the NPP over a misleading article seeking to compare Alex Mould’s pedigree to that of failed a Vice President who deceived Ghanaians into voting them to power in 2016?
There will be another day to assess his performance as Veep. But truth be told, a cursory look at the profile of both personalities should clearly tell you Dr. Bawumia's achievements before his nomination as the running mate of the NPP comes nowhere near that of Mr. Alex Mould.
Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia
Dr. Bawumia spent most of his formative years talking (lecturing at foreign universities as an Economist) versus than executing and holding the C-Suite (corporate life). He was never the Head of any public or private institution or organization before. The little we know about Dr Bawumia shows he worked at the research department of IMF and then joined Bank of Ghana as Senior Economist. He was then promoted to Head of Department, and later became the special assistant to the Governor and was appointed Deputy Governor (a position he held for two years) before joining politics.
Alex Mould:
With over 30 years of international energy and banking experience, Alex Mould is widely regarded as one of Africa’s leading authorities on energy, economic, banking, finance and leadership issues. In fact his pedigree shows that he has managed organisations successfully. From his days as the Executive Director of Standard Chartered Bank in private life to Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority and Ghana National Petroleum Corporation in public life. He's also held senior positions at Standard Chartered Bank, not only in Ghana, but in New York and Union Bank of Switzerland, also in New York.
Conclusion
Dr Bawumia’s performance goes to confirm the perception that there’s difference between what is thought in class and what actually pertains in the corporate world. He campaigned on lies and deceits to win political power and when it came to execution he has failed all Ghanaians who had hope in him.
Alex Mould on the other hand have worked most of his life in leadership roles in the finance industry and in commercial banking and corporate banking and in the energy sector. A little research on his achievements in these institutions reveals he put up impressive performance and it’s all over the internet for our education.
So I totally agree with Mr. Mould when he says they are not in competition. Dr. Bawumia has been there and failed and to borrow his own words “if the fundamentals are weak, the exchange rate will expose you”. And now that we are all aware the fundamentals are weak, the exchange rate has exposed Dr. Bawumia’s skillset and he has failed all of us who trusted him during the 2016 elections.
Alex Mould on the other hand has a record of been able to deliver what has been assigned him from his days at Standard Chartered Bank to NPA and GNPC. At least we all know he is a thinker and doer. Highly educated with and a proven leader with unrivalled international and local experience. He is a patriot who wants Ghana to live up to her potential, and deliver for the benefit of all Ghanaians.