Former President and Presidential Candidate for the biggest opposition party in Ghana (National Democratic Congress) after a tussle and bustle has finally settled on his running mate for election 2020. The Former President after losing the 2016 elections staged a comeback to contest for the Presidency but his running mate for that election passed on in 2018.
One difficult decision to make is choosing a running mate. John Mahama was faced with the complexity of choosing a running mate because of the standards the opposition party had thrown to him, but finally the National Democratic Congress and it’s Flagbearer has settled on Dr. Isaac Bannerman Nii Moi Thompson.
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Dr. Thompson was born at Bantama in Kumasi to Isaac Bannerman Nii Moi Thompson Snr. of the Cocoa services division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Madam Esther Adoley Allotey.
He left his home in Kumasi for Liberia and Serria Leone in order to fulfill his dream of obtaining secondary and higher education. After passing the Common Entrance Exams on two occasions his dad dragged his feet about sending him to secondary school. His mother then asked him to assist her in her jewelry shop at Kumasi Central Market.
Initially he accepted his mother’s suggestion, but after a careful consideration , he concluded that because he was very good academically it would not be the best to cut short his education that way. For that reason he later packed a few belongings including books and left for Accra , hopeful that from there he could make his way to Liberia where his elder brother lived.
At Accra he stayed at OSU without money while exploring options, luck smiled on him when he met another Ghanaian who was about to travel to Liberia and offered to assist young Thompson.
In Liberia , he lived with his brother for a while before in search for independence he moved in with a friend. One day while walking the streets of Monrovia trying to figure out what to do next , he saw an artist making a sketch on a billboard. As he too was very talented at drawing , he noticed straight away that there was something wrong with what the artist was painting and pointed out to him.
He was challenged by the artist to climb up and do the drawing. He impressed the artist and was employed as an assistant. All this while he was studying at home and attending evening classes.
After a year he went to Serria Leone where he worked as a reporter for a local newspaper since he was good at writing. Nii returned to Liberia and continued to work as a journalist while attending school at night. He became a sub-editor at age 21 for a daily newspaper because of his deep intellect.
After four years of practicing journalism , he left for the United States of America where he successfully obtained his first degree in General Economics from the City University of New York -Broklyn College , then he futhered and obtained his masters in International Economics from State University of New York. Albany and finally a doctorate in Developmental Economics and Public Policy from the University of Pittsburgh.
He later worked as a Senior Economist at New York State Bureau of Fiscal and Economics Analysis in New York City before returning home in 1997 after a 21 year absence. He worked of a number of international and local organisations including the United Nations Development Planning for which he served as a Senior Economic advisor in South Africa before returning home to join the Government of Ghana in 2013.
He became the Director General for the National Developmental Planning Commission whose plan was to have a 40 year Developmental agenda for Ghana.
Dr. Isaac Bannerman Nii Moi Thompson is an astute , eminent and a brilliant economist.
The announcement by the Flagbearer will be very soon but sources within the Leadership hints Dr. Thompson is the favorite. The dark days of the National Democratic Congress is over an as John Mahama said the elections ahead is a “boot for boot”. Dr. Bawumia Vrs Dr. Thompson.
