The Election 2020 Campaign Manager of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Prof Joshua Alabi, has described the John Mahama and Nana Jane Opoku-Agyemang team as the best pair for the country’s leadership.

Prof Alabi made the comment in an exclusive interview with Accra News’ Nana Yaw Adwenpa on Wednesday, 9 September 2020.

The former flagbearer aspirant described the decision to choose Prof Opoku-Agyemang as not only a good one but one that will have enormous benefits for the country.

Reiterating the experiences of the former Minister of Education, Prof Alabi said: “I knew Jane when she was vice-chancellor and I was a vice-chancellor, too. Knowing the work of a vice-chancellor, if you’re able to go through it, then you’re ready.”

Prof Alabi noted that the post of a university vice-chancellor is tough – like managing a mini country.

He said: “The vice-chancellor, apart from managing the university, is like a mini country. [You’re] managing the university, you’re managing organisations like TEWU, you’re managing UTAG, you’re managing the students, SRC, you’re managing GRASAG, you’re managing the administrators and they all have their specialists, like the way the country is”.

"Apart from that, you’re managing the university itself, it’s not an easy job and she was the president of Vice-Chancellors Ghana, all the vice-chancellors, she was the president at a point in time, and like we all know, she was the first female vice-chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, one of the premier traditional universities that we have in this country and to become a vice-chancellor is not very easy.”

Prof Alabi described Prof Opoku-Agyemang’s membership of the UNESCO as one of her many achievements that he is proud of.

“You rise from a lecturer, senior lecturer, professor, you compete among your peers, other professors to be selected. Jane, as a matter of fact, has to her credit membership of very reputable organisations worldwide and one that I’m personally proud of is the UNESCO.

"A member of the executive board of UNESCO, she’s bringing all these experiences with experience as a formal vice-chancellor to bare and to crown it, she was a Minister of Education, and under her leadership, we recorded the highest performance in the BECE, WASSCE results," Prof Alabi noted.

He added: “So, when you have such a woman teaming up with a performer like John Mahama, what do you need again, it’s the best pair.”