Prince Ibrahim: And John Mahama turned the tables on NPP using reverse psychology

In the grand chessboard of Ghanaian politics, strategic foresight is often the harbinger of victory. John Mahama, the leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has demonstrated a masterful application of this principle, setting a political trap that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) walked into, seemingly with eyes wide open.

Mahama's prescience was on full display when he publicly conjectured that the NPP, perceived traditionally as an Akan-dominated party, would not elevate Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, a Northerner and a Muslim, to its flagbearership. It was a statement laced with reverse psychology - a term coined by psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, which refers to the act of saying or doing something to convey a meaning opposite to the literal one. Mahama's move was akin to a grandmaster in a game of chess, where each move is calculated to lead the opponent into a pre-set trap.

However, in their recent presidential primaries, the NPP sought to overturn this narrative. At the result declaration rally in the Accra Sports Stadium, Lawyer Justin Frimpong Kodua (JFK) celebrated the election of Dr Bawumia as their flagbearer, proclaiming it a historical moment that shattered the stereotypes Mahama had alluded to.

To quote him, he said “Not long ago someone in this country made a statement, that when it comes to the New Patriotic Party, there is no way a person from the north can ever become a flagbearer of our party. But today, what has happened?” Frimpong asked, to which the crowd responded with chants of "history, history, history!"