Bawumia visits Asantehemaa at Manhyia Palace, asks for prayers for his presidential bid

Pinned summary · as of 16:37

New Patriotic Party (NPP) leader Dr Mahamudu Bawumia went to the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi on 17 September to pay his respects to the Asantehemaa, Nana Yaa Akyaa II. Coming as the party looks towards the 2028 election, the call was meant to greet her on her enstoolment and to ask for her blessing on his ambition to lead Ghana.

What we know

• Dr Bawumia, the former Vice President and NPP flagbearer, called on the Asantehemaa at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi on 17 September 2026, and she received him and his entourage.
• The purpose of the call, according to both Opemsuo 104.7 and Kumasi Mail, was to congratulate Nana Yaa Akyaa II on taking the stool and to seek her blessing as he pursues the presidency.
• Senior NPP members and supporters travelled with Dr Bawumia to the palace.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  Reports differ on the weekday of the visit. Opemsuo 104.7 called 17 September a Wednesday, while Kumasi Mail and Onua Online described it as a Thursday.
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  Opemsuo 104.7 reported that more than 30 MPs, party executives, founding members, former district and municipal chief executives and supporters were in the delegation, and it named Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Francis Asenso-Boakye, Patricia Appiagyei and Akosua Manu, plus Andrew Amoako Asiama, the Second Deputy Speaker, as present. Kumasi Mail spoke only of several leading members, so the count and names rest on one report.
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  Opemsuo 104.7 said Dr Bawumia told the queen he holds the NPP's mandate for the 2028 elections and asked her to keep him in her daily prayers, adding that he wanted to be President. It also quoted him as telling her: “God put you in this seat. You are blessed, and I pray that God will preserve you, give you long life and good health.” No other report carried his remarks.
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  According to Opemsuo 104.7, the Asantehemaa thanked him for coming, pledged to support him with prayers and reminded him that leadership is ordained by God. Kumasi Mail and Onua Online said only that she received him and responded to his request.
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  Kumasi Mail described the call as one of several engagements between the NPP flagbearer and traditional leaders ahead of the 2028 general election; this framing is that publication's own.
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  Opemsuo 104.7 separately reported that former President John Agyekum Kufuor visited the Asantehemaa on 18 September with close relatives, in his first meeting with her since her enstoolment in July 2026. It said he explained he had been abroad at the time and wished her long life and good health. No other report has confirmed this visit.

Why it matters for Ghana

The palace at Manhyia is one of the most influential centres of traditional authority in Ghana, and calls there by political leaders are closely watched in Kumasi and across the Ashanti Region, where the NPP draws much of its support. The visit shows how the party's leadership is courting traditional leaders early in the run-up to 2028. Whether such goodwill shapes voters' choices is a matter for the election itself.