Hajia Alima Mahama, who stirred the political landscape last week when her name dropped as a favourite in the choice of a partner for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate, has gone philosophical about the development, saying "may God's purpose for me on earth be fulfilled". She continued, "I am only a mortal and don't control destiny. God is supreme". There was a certain power in those words as she uttered them in response to a question posed by our reporter about her reaction to the new chip on her shoulders. The issue is not just choosing a woman but a Ghanaian who is capable of delivering the services required of a vice president, she explained and asked "what if had been a man?" Much as she agreed that women deserve special attention in the scheme of things, she adds, "Should the mantle fall on me and the party, my duty first and foremost, would be to work diligently and assiduously to prop our motherland, Ghana, to prove to my compatriots that what a man can do, a woman can do with exceptional results." She said should she be given the opportunity to partner Akufo-Addo, "I will see it as a new opening to serve Ghana at another level." Her father, who served as a Member of Parliament during the Busia regime, she recalled, was often told by his friends that "Alima would one day be in an important position of trust, there is no doubt." Her rise to her present position, she said, was God's will, a premonition which some elders had long ago. Life, she said, was not rosy in her formative years as it was dogged with bumps. "I do not come from a rich family and so I went through rough times". The tribulations which she passed through in life, she added, have hardened her enough to weather all conditions. Coming from a polygamous home, she recalled living with her three step mothers in the North in her childhood, adding "I had a good relationship with them." Her first attempt in 2000 to wrest the Nalerigu seat from the NOC, then the party's stronghold, was a fiasco "but I persevered and clinched it in the subsequent polls," she said. Talking about religion she continued, "I do not carry it on my forehead but it is within me. "When I am down I go to my inside self for a relief." Her first Hajj, she said, was in 1998, adding "I planned repeating it in ten years time but because of the impending election I would be unable to embark on it." Tumingto the Bawku crisis she said, "Who knows perhaps it would take a woman to bring peace to that part of the country?" The Bawku crisis, according to Hajia Alima, is a localized issue and does not cover the whole of Mamprugu. "We do not have It In cast Mamprusi. It is interesting to note that in Zebila close to Bawku, Mamprusis and Kusasis are living in peace. She prayed the feuding factions to engage in compromises or give and take so that peace could return to that area in the interest of our children. "How does it benefit us when we have land without human beings to occupy it?" she asked. The recent newspaper report that she is a favourite in the running mate issue provoked a flurry of discussions in various circles both within the ruling NPP and opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC). For the NDC their interest is strategic and has to do with the Nalerigu MP's potential in adding to the electoral fortunes of the NPP. Hajia Alima's philosophy is coming at a time when various interest groups aligned to the running mate hopefuls are engaged in last minute manouvres to turn the tide in their favour. At the time of filing this report, an Islamic women's group was organizing an event to ask for the choice of a female running mate for Nana Akulo-Addo. A day or so before that, a Zanga group had been organized to declare that they do not favour Hajia Alima on the grounds of gender. Until an official announcement is made about who partners Nana Akufo-Addo, the media would continue to be awash with news about one group or the other issuing releases supporting or destroying the image of others. Source: Daily Guide