“Communication is the lifeblood of the 21st century politics. Hence, getting it wrong makes all other things wrong.” This was a profound statement made by Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku, in his submission and it reverberated in my mind immediately it came from his mouth.

After listening to the messages of the two candidates for the Regional Communication Officer position when they visited the Atwima zone, I can boldly say that Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku is the best fit for the job. Though he spoke for fewer minutes, he was the most succinct, clearer in thought and had a better perspective of the problems and the solutions needed to position the communication/branding of the Regional Party ahead of the 2028 elections.

These are my reasons for saying he is the best bet for the job at hand:

1. Voter dynamics and reach: About 72% of the voting population in the Ashanti Region by 2028 will be youthful. The realities of the youth and the aged are different materially and in form. It is, therefore, strategically right and proper to have a Regional Communication Officer who identifies with this constituency. Dr. Keskine is a youth leader who has demonstrated competence, purpose, drive, and the ‘hunger’ to see the party win power in 2028.

2. Experience is key: Dr. Keskine is the most experienced in the race. He has about 19 years of experience as a party communicator from 2007 to date. He is currently a spokesperson on the NPPs Sub-Committee on Roads, which is in itself a testament to the Party’s recognition of his communication expertise, commitment, and service.

3. Winning the new media: Social media is the biggest constituency in Ghana today. Ashanti Region needs a Regional Communication Officer who has demonstrable understanding and presence in that space and has a working relationship with the major players in the social media arena. Dr. Keskine Owusu Poku is that person. He promised to bring the party’s media team under one unit, train, and resource them to be effective at what they do. These include bloggers, tiktokers , FB & WhatsApp warriors. He demonstrated again his existing working relationships with these groups and how he will leverage that to effectively coordinate and equip them.

    

   

    

4. The lost traditional media: Dr. Keskine is best placed to win back the media the party lost in 2024 because of better relationships and human managerial skills. He is respectful, not quick-tempered, and embraces feedback with sincerity and respect.

5. Who communicates better? Dr. Keskine is a practical, intelligent, and research & fact-driven communicator. Pound-for-pound, he is a SOLID SOLID COMMUNICATOR. He is simply excellent when on shows.

6. Presence and visibility: Compared to his competitor, he is energetic and more visible in the media space. When the NDC deliberately questioned NPP achievement in the Ashanti Region, he answered the call by moving across the Ashanti Region to bring NPP projects to the limelight. We can link this to his promise on the party’s poor visibility in the Ashanti Region and the need to be visible long before 2028. This is what a good communication officer does.

7. Agenda setting and leading the narrative: Dr. Keskine has proven experience in media agenda setting and managing media narratives in the party’s favour. His bold, intelligent, and forthright approach coupled with his proven integrity has made him a good friend of the media, and that is exactly what NPP needs to win back the media for the party.

8. Human capital development: Dr. Keskine has demonstrated his ability to identify, develop, and assist communication talents over the last decade. Talk of Nana Adjei, Jimmy, NkwanPa, etc. Thus far, he is the go-to person for most communicators when they need documents, information, and data for communication duties. He has served this purpose for years.

9. Vision for the party communication outfit: His vision for the communication outfit in the Ashanti Region is the most practical, reasonable, and relatable. The truth is that we can not win 2028 with the current communication system.

For Ashanti Region to lead the charge to victory 2028, the communication outfit of the NPP in the region must be restructured so as to effectively lead/shape the political narrative in the region. We can’t continually cede the control of the agenda to the NDC and expect the fortunes of the party to be bright.

He (Dr.Keskine) intelligently touched on the major problems and professed practical, sensible and relatable solutions which when implemented, will help the party win back the media, equip communicators to represent the party well, and coordinate the narratives we push out.

All factors point to the fact that Dr. Keskine is the best for the Ashanti NPP Regional Communication Officer position. ”
Source:George Adjei,a member of Ashanti NPP Communications team