Adom-Otchere Credits Julius Debrah With Engineering Mahama’s Political Comeback
Journalist Paul Adom-Otchere has credited Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah with playing a significant role in President John Dramani Mahama’s return to the presidential race after his defeat in the 2016 general elections.
According to Mr Adom-Otchere, Mr Debrah was instrumental in persuading the former president to reconsider his position on seeking another term, believing that his political career was not over despite the electoral setback.
Speaking about the relationship between the two men, the journalist said convincing Mr Mahama to return to the presidential contest was initially difficult following his defeat by approximately one million votes in the 2016 elections.
The defeat was particularly historic because Mr Mahama became the first sitting president under Ghana’s Fourth Republic to lose a re-election bid.
Mr Adom-Otchere said the scale of the defeat had raised questions about Mr Mahama’s political future, with indications at the time that he was not interested in contesting the presidency again.
He cited a January 2017 front-page publication by the Daily Graphic, reportedly headlined, “John Mahama is not running for president again, says Ibrahim Mahama”, as reflecting the uncertainty surrounding the former president’s political ambitions at the time.
Mr Adom-Otchere attributed Mr Mahama’s eventual return to the presidential race to the determination of Mr Debrah, who he said remained convinced that the former president had a future in Ghanaian politics.
He said Mr Debrah worked behind the scenes in 2017 to mobilise support, resources and political networks to help Mr Mahama secure the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidature ahead of the 2020 general elections.
According to the journalist, the 2020 election outcome subsequently helped restore confidence within the NDC and renewed Mr Mahama’s belief in his chances of returning to the presidency.
Mr Adom-Otchere also pointed to the certainty surrounding Mr Debrah’s appointment as Chief of Staff following the NDC’s victory in the 2024 general elections.
He observed that while there was considerable media speculation about appointments to key government positions, including the Finance Ministry, Attorney-General’s Department and Majority Leadership, there was relatively little uncertainty about who would occupy the Chief of Staff position.
He said several individuals were mentioned in discussions about other influential appointments, but Mr Debrah’s selection was widely regarded as settled because of his longstanding relationship with the President.
Mr Adom-Otchere argued that the confidence surrounding the appointment reflected the depth of trust and political partnership Mr Debrah had built with Mr Mahama over the years.
-Overseeronline.com
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