Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the vice president, has demonstrated that he is not only honest but also modest after being observed on a commercial flight from Accra to Tamale.
On November 26, 2022, the Vice President boarded an Embraer 145 aircraft operated by Africa World Airlines for the Accra-Tamale route.
Manasseh Azure Awuni, a distinguished Ghanaian journalist, saw the vice president on the plane and documented their accidental encounter online, praising the vice president for his kind act.
“This morning, those of us on board Africa World’s Embraer 145 commercial flight to Tamale were joined by an unexpected passenger,” Manasseh said in a post that included a picture of Bawumia sitting alone on a double-seat with his security assistant behind him.
This is the first time I have heard or seen Ghana’s president or vice president on a local commercial flight, I don’t know how frequently it occurs,” the message continued.
Public leaders frequently travel in enormous convoys of V8 cars in Ghana, and it is extremely unusual for them to fly on unremarkable civilian aircraft, as Bawumia just did.
Due to the intense online discussion that followed Manasseh’s tweet, many people praised the Vice President for taking the initiative to save the country money.
One person commented on social media, “Keep this up Dr. B.”
Others, however, disagreed, arguing that there was nothing unusual about his actions given that public leaders frequently travel in this way in other nations around the world.
In either case, it is astonishing that a Ghanaian public official would make such a decision, especially given the country’s current economic situation.
It is not surprising that the modest Dr. Bawumia took this action, and one can only hope that it sets a precedent for most other public officials to follow.
Vice President Bawumia stands out from many other Ghanaian politicians because of his humility, which is one of the reasons why many people think he will make the finest leader for the NPP after Nana.