God will use me to create jobs in this country
In the long arc of Ghanaian democratic life, where the hopes of the educated young have so often outpaced the economy's ability to absorb them, Bernard Antwi Boasiako — known as Chairman Wontumi — stood before university students in May 2026 and offered a familiar but urgent covenant: leadership in exchange for opportunity. His bid for the NPP chairmanship, framed around a Bawumia presidency and a promise of graduate employment, reflects a deeper truth about Ghanaian politics — that youth unemployment is not merely a policy problem but the moral question at the center of every election cycle. The moment is one of many in a gathering internal contest that will shape how the New Patriotic Party enters 2028, and how a generation of degree-holders decides whether to believe in the system once more.
- Graduate unemployment in Ghana has reached a pitch where political candidates must address it not as a talking point but as a survival issue for an entire generation.
- Wontumi's appearance before TESCON students at the University of Ghana signals that the NPP's internal chairmanship race is already heating up, with multiple figures staking their claims ahead of 2028.
- His pitch — that his chairmanship combined with a Bawumia presidency would unlock jobs for qualified but idle youth — is a calculated fusion of party loyalty and economic promise.
- The students he addressed are a skeptical, peer-influential demographic who have watched political pledges dissolve before, making the credibility of this moment as important as its content.
- The NPP's coming internal contests will determine not just party leadership but the messaging architecture the party carries into what is expected to be a fiercely competitive general election.
Chairman Wontumi stood before business students at the University of Ghana in May 2026 and made a promise that cut to the heart of what young Ghanaians most want to hear: elect him NPP chairman, he said, and jobs would follow. Speaking to TESCON members — the party's tertiary education wing — he offered a clear equation: his leadership of the party machinery, paired with Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in the presidency by 2028, would open doors for graduates who currently hold qualifications but little else.
The pledge is not unusual in Ghanaian political life. Job creation has become the unavoidable currency of every campaign, because educated youth unemployment is one of the country's most visible and persistent wounds. What gives Wontumi's moment its particular weight is the timing. He is one of several figures now actively maneuvering for the NPP chairmanship as the party begins its internal transition toward 2028, and the race to define the party's direction — and its promises — is already underway.
Wontumi's standing as a businessman and long-time party figure gives him credibility in these contests, though the field is competitive. His appeal to students — invoking faith, naming the graduate unemployment crisis directly, and tying his fortunes to Bawumia's — is both sincere positioning and strategic outreach to a demographic the NPP cannot afford to lose.
The students in that room are educated, networked, and increasingly wary of promises that evaporate after election day. Whether Wontumi's words carry beyond the moment remains an open question. What is certain is that as Ghana moves toward 2028, the ability to speak credibly about jobs — and to be believed — will separate the candidates who matter from those who merely speak.
Bernard Antwi Boasiako, known across Ghana's political circles as Chairman Wontumi, stood before a room of business students at the University of Ghana on a May afternoon in 2026 and made a straightforward promise: elect him chairman of the New Patriotic Party, he said, and jobs would follow. The students listening—members of TESCON, the party's tertiary education wing—represented exactly the constituency he was speaking to: young people with degrees in hand and few places to use them.
Wontumi's pitch was direct. Pair his leadership of the party with Dr Mahamudu Bawumia's presidency in 2028, he told them, and the employment landscape would shift. Graduates struggling to find work, relatives sitting at home despite their qualifications—these people would have opportunities. The formula he offered was simple: his chairmanship plus Bawumia in State House equals jobs for the young.
The promise itself is not unusual in Ghanaian politics. Job creation has become the currency of electoral campaigns, the thing every candidate must address because unemployment, particularly among the educated young, remains one of the country's most visible problems. What marks Wontumi's moment is the timing and the stage. He is one of several figures now actively positioning themselves for the NPP's internal leadership elections, jockeying for the party chairmanship as the broader 2028 general election cycle takes shape. The party is preparing for a transition, and men like Wontumi are making their case for who should lead it.
Wontumi's background as a businessman and party stalwart gives him standing in these conversations, though his candidacy is one among several. The NPP's internal contests will determine not just who leads the party machinery, but also who shapes its messaging and strategy heading into what promises to be a competitive election. In that context, his appeal to students—his invocation of God's will, his specific acknowledgment of the graduate unemployment crisis—is both genuine political positioning and a calculated reach for a demographic that the party needs.
The students he addressed represent a particular kind of voter: educated, connected, likely to influence their peers, and acutely aware of their own economic prospects. They are also a constituency that has grown more skeptical of political promises over time. Whether Wontumi's pledge will resonate beyond the moment of its delivery remains to be seen. What is clear is that as the NPP prepares for its internal contests and the country moves toward 2028, job creation will remain central to how candidates make their case—and how voters decide whether to believe them.
Citações Notáveis
If you make me the National Chairman and Dr Bawumia becomes the president in 2028, God will use me to create jobs in this country— Bernard Antwi Boasiako (Chairman Wontumi)
All your relatives who graduated and are also looking for jobs to do, they will also get work to do because of you— Bernard Antwi Boasiako (Chairman Wontumi)
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did Wontumi choose to make this pitch specifically to university students rather than, say, business leaders or party elders?
Students are the future voters and party activists. They're also the ones most visibly affected by unemployment—they've just finished their education and are hitting a wall. Speaking to them directly, in their space, signals that he understands their problem.
Do you think he actually believes he can create jobs as party chairman, or is this standard campaign rhetoric?
The party chairman doesn't directly create jobs—that's the government's role. But Wontumi is positioning himself as part of a team with Bawumia. He's saying: elect me to help lead the party machinery, and together we'll deliver on economic promises. It's a partnership pitch, not a solo one.
What does his candidacy tell us about the NPP's internal dynamics right now?
The party is in transition. There's no sitting chairman running for re-election, which means multiple people see an opening. Wontumi's move suggests the party is already thinking about 2028 and who should be at the helm. It's not just about the chairmanship—it's about positioning for influence in the next government.
How much weight do these internal contests actually carry with ordinary voters?
Less than you might think. Most voters care about the presidential candidate and what they promise. But the party chairman shapes campaign strategy, messaging, and how the party mobilizes. So it matters more behind the scenes than it does at the ballot box.
Is job creation a realistic promise for any political leader in Ghana right now?
It's complicated. Real job creation requires sustained economic growth, investment, and structural changes that take years. But politicians promise it because it's what people need to hear, and because some job creation is always possible through government spending and policy. The question is whether the scale of the promise matches what's actually deliverable.