Kumawu by-election: Kwaku Duah miscalculated his chances of winning – Political Scientist

A Political Science Lecturer at the University of Education, Winneba, Dr. Isaac Brako, says the Independent Parliamentary candidate in the just-held Kumawu by-election, Kwaku Duah miscalculated his chances of winning the election.

According to him, the Independent Candidate based his confidence in winning the seat on his performance in the 2020 Parliamentary election forgetting that the dynamics were different when it came to the by-election.

Kwaku Duah, ahead of the by-election, was very confident of wrestling the Kumawu Seat from the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) after a good performance in the 2020 election, where he lost to the late MP by some 3,000 votes.

Some political watchers had actually tipped him to cause a stair by snatching the seat during the by-election.

However, at the end of the by-election on Tuesday, May 23, Kwaku Duah performed abysmally, garnering just 2,478 votes, with the NPP candidate, Ernest Yaw Anim winning with 15 264 votes.

Commenting on the election in an interview on Ghana Kasa on Kasapa 102.5FM/Agoo TV, Dr. Isaac Brako said the Independent candidate got his calculations wrong.

“The independent candidate should have known that this was a different election that had different dynamics. He was not going to contest the same candidate. He ought to have known that he was going into a contest with a new candidate who had a different character and appeal. The discussions that heralded the elections also did not favour him. He shouldn’t have had so much confidence in winning the election knowing Kumawu seat has always been occupied by the NPP under the Fourth Republic.”

The winner of the by-election, Yaw Anim, is expected to be sworn in by the Speaker of Parliament when Parliament reconvenes on June 6, 2023.

You can also watch the latest episode of People & Places: