Dr. Opoku Prempeh: Ghana’s Energy Minister Resigns 

The Member of Parliament for the Manhyia South Constituency in the Ashanti Region, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, popularly known as NAPO, has resigned from his position as Energy Minister.

The announcement comes after the Manhyia South MP was outdoored as the Vice Presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party for the 2024 general elections.

Meanwhile, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has accepted the resignation of Dr. Opoku Prempeh as Minister for Energy, with effect from 18th July 2024.

This decision has been made to enable Dr. Opoku Prempeh to focus on his new role as the Running Mate to the 2024 flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

In a statement by the Director of Communications at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin noted that President Akufo-Addo has expressed his deep gratitude to Dr. Opoku Prempeh for his dedicated service to the government and the people of Ghana.

“His tenure as Minister for Education and as Minister for Energy has been marked by a stellar record of accomplishments and significant contributions to the education and energy sectors.

“In light of Dr. Opoku Prempeh’s resignation, President Akufo-Addo has asked the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Abu Jinapor, MP for Damongo, to exercise Cabinet oversight responsibility over the Ministry of Energy.

“Additionally, the Minister-of-State-designate at the Ministry of Energy, Herbert Krapa, will be responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Ministry.

“The President has asked the two persons to liaise closely with Dr. Opoku Prempeh to ensure a smooth transition in the affairs of the Ministry.

Find below the statement released by the Presidency

 

About NAPO

Early life and education

Matthew Opoku Prempeh was born on 23 May 1968 in Ashanti New Town, a suburb of Kumasi, and hails from Pakyi No. 2 in the Ashanti Region.[10] Born to Oheneba Kwame Kyeretwie and Madam Elizabeth Akosua Nyarko, NAPO’s father was one of the many sons of the 14th Asantehene, Otumfuo Agyemang Prempeh II.

He started his basic education at KNUST Primary and continued to Prempeh College in Kumasi, Ashanti Region of Ghana, for his middle school education.

He studied Human Biology and Medicine at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and completed his MB CHB in 1994. He continued with post-graduate studies in MSc. Clinical Epidemiology at the Netherlands Institute of Health Sciences in 1998[13] and at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he studied Leadership and Government(certificate course).[14][15] In 2002, he pursued postgraduate training in surgery in the UK (MRCS).
 

Matthew Opoku Prempeh was born on 23 May 1968 in Ashanti New Town, a suburb of Kumasi, and hails from Pakyi No. 2 in the Ashanti Region.[10] Born to Oheneba Kwame Kyeretwie and Madam Elizabeth Akosua Nyarko, NAPO’s father was one of the many sons of the 14th Asantehene, Otumfuo Agyemang Prempeh II.

He started his basic education at KNUST Primary and continued to Prempeh College in Kumasi, Ashanti Region of Ghana, for his middle school education.

He studied Human Biology and Medicine at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and completed his MB CHB in 1994. He continued with post-graduate studies in MSc. Clinical Epidemiology at the Netherlands Institute of Health Sciences in 1998 and at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he studied Leadership and Government(certificate course).  In 2002, he pursued postgraduate training in surgery in the UK (MRCS).

Career

Prior to entering parliament, Prempeh served as CEO of Keyedmap Security Services Limited from 2004 to 2009. He is also a medical doctor  and served as a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of the United Kingdom from 1999 to 2003.

Politics
Member of parliament

As a Ghanaian parliamentarian, he represents Manhyia South in Kumasi, formerly representing Manhyia. He was first elected to parliament in 2008 and is a member of the New Patriotic Party. In 2016, he was re-elected with 35,958 votes or 87.17% of the votes cast in the district. He was a member of the health committee and the appointments committee.

Prempeh contested the 2020 Ghanaian general election as a parliamentary candidate for the Manhyia South constituency under the banner of the New Patriotic Party and won by a large margin.

Minister of Education

He was appointed by President Nana Akufo-Addo on 10 January 2017 to serve as Minister for Education in Ghana. He served in that role for 4 years until 6 January 2021 when the tenure of the president and his ministers ended.

In May 2017, President Nana Akufo-Addo named Prempeh as one of the nineteen ministers who would form his cabinet.[20] The names of the 19 ministers were submitted to the Parliament of Ghana and announced by the former Speaker of the House, Mike Ocquaye. As a Cabinet minister, Prempeh was part of the inner circle of the president and was to aid in key decision-making activities in the country.[20]

Prempeh also contributed to the educational sector of Ghana as a Minister of Education, such as improving the infrastructure,promoting vocational and technical education (TVET), and leading the government’s flagship programme ”FREE SHS”.

 

Minister of Energy

In 2021, the President of Ghana, Nana Akuffo-Addo, after being re-elected as President, named Dr. Mattew Opoku Prempeh as Minister of Energy. He had previously served as the Minister of Education for President Nana Akuffo-Addo’s first term.

Committees

Prempeh is a member of the Defense and Interior Committee and also of the Appointments Committee.

In May 2021, the University of Education Winneba conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate Degree.

In July 2021, the University of Professional Studies also awarded him an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.

As a member of the Parliament of Ghana, he represents Manhyia South in Kumasi, formerly representing Manhyia.

The University of Cape Coast is the latest institution to recognize Dr. Prempeh’s contributions to the development of Ghana and his immense service to the University of Cape Coast, Ghana.

In May 2022, a group by the name of Friends of NAPO presented some educational materials to schools in the Manhyia South Constituency to mark his 54th birthday.[28]

Prempeh College named a dormitory block after him on 17 June 2023.

Election 2024

Ahead of the 2024 General Elections, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who was the incumbent Vice President of Ghana and elected Flag bearer to contest for Presidency on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party, presented Matthew Opoku Prempeh as his preferred choice of running mate, subject to clearance from the party hierarchy.

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