Award-winning investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has stated emphatically that he is not politically neutral—and doesn’t intend to be.
In a Facebook post that has sparked considerable conversation online, Manasseh explained his longstanding belief that journalists, like all citizens, have a right to participate in political discourse and decision-making.
“I’m not politically neutral,” he wrote. “I wrote an article to that effect in 2014. It’s a Google search away. I am a citizen of Ghana, first and foremost, before being a journalist. I vote. And I have an interest in who becomes my president.”
Recounting his voting history, Manasseh revealed that in 2012, he voted for then-incumbent President John Dramani Mahama. However, he withdrew his support in the 2016 elections and voted instead for Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
“I believed — and still believe today — that he [Mahama] did not deserve my vote in 2016,” he wrote, noting that Mahama appeared to have “learnt some great lessons in the wilderness of opposition.”
The journalist, whose book “The President Ghana Never Got” made headlines last year, reiterated his reasons for abstaining from the 2024 elections. He said an NPP win would have sent a “dangerous signal” to Ghanaians about accountability and impunity.
“An NPP victory in 2024 would send a dangerous signal about our democracy — that a party could kill and still be retained in office to continue killing with impunity. An NPP defeat could ensure some semblance of accountability. Thankfully, many Ghanaians agreed with me.”
Looking ahead to the 2028 elections, Manasseh says he may be forced to choose between the NDC and the NPP once again—unless a more credible political force emerges.
“If what John Mahama has done so far as president continues, and if he were to contest again, I wouldn’t have a difficulty choosing who to vote for in 2028. But John Mahama will not contest.”
He added, however, that the future of his vote hinges heavily on how the NDC performs and who leads it after Mahama.
“The rumours I hear from the NDC’s camp about Mahama’s possible successor don’t inspire hope. Who leads the NDC and how the party performs in the next four years will determine my choice between the NDC and NPP.”
