Inside the 1999 meetings that birthed Ghana's first presidential debate

Edward Boateng revealed what led to Ghana's first presidential debate

Former Ghanaian Ambassador to China, Edward Boateng, has revealed how a series of meetings in 1999 set in motion the process that led to Ghana’s first televised presidential debate in 2000.

Recounting how the idea emerged, Boateng said discussions with an international associate, Martin, inspired the initiative following their involvement in presidential election activities in the United States.

He explained that Martin agreed to explore the possibility of introducing the concept in Ghana, while he undertook to secure the support of influential media personalities and other local stakeholders.

Boateng subsequently approached Gifty Affenyi-Dadzie, then President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), who helped develop the initial concept.

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The team also approached the then Minister of Communications, John Dramani Mahama, whose immediate support came as a surprise to the organisers.

“When we went to him, we thought he would say no. But we went to him and maybe he hadn't consulted his bosses then. He said yes,” Boateng recalled.

However, securing the participation of presidential candidates proved more difficult. The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) John Agyekum Kufuor initially rejected the invitation, forcing the organisers to spend about three months persuading him to take part.

Two weeks before the scheduled event, the organisers encountered another setback when the government communicated its decision to withdraw its support.

Boateng said they refused to abandon the initiative, insisting that it was not a government event.

“But this is not a government event. It's our initiative. We are doing it,” he recalled telling the authorities.

Despite the challenges, the organisers secured the support of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) and went ahead with the debate on September 27, 2000.

The event attracted significant public attention, although the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, John Evans Atta Mills, did not participate.

Boateng believes the debate had an impact on the election campaign, particularly for Mr Kufuor, who went on to defeat Mills in the December 2000 presidential election.

“I think it helped President Kufuor at that time because he came across as very presidential. He was very measured in his responses,” he said.

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