Politics is a numbers game, but behind every fine politician are loyal friends who have stood by him/her through thick and thin. 

These loyalists are the people he/she laughs and cries with; those who take the flag publicly for him/her to stand and the few who squeeze water out of stone when there is no turning point. They are the few who are, sometimes ready to sacrifice comfort and life for the leader to live and progress.

All over the world, the political loyalists are many yet few and sometimes even nonexistent. For a politician with power, everyone is a loyalist, largely driven by the desire to profit from association. 

But like love and respect, true loyalty is tested when a politician is ‘naked’ – without power and assumed not to get any soon.

Having observed President-elect, John Dramani Mahama become the only person in the Fourth Republic to have lost the presidency and regain it, I have seen how loyalty has influenced his resurgence and what it will mean for his second-term presidency if properly harnessed.

Top three loyalists

There is no doubt that party executives from the polling station up to the national level worked tirelessly across the length and breadth of the country to ensure this resounding victory for the NDC in both the presidential and parliamentary elections. 

Beyond these broad party-structured loyalists are a few closed associates who stood by President Mahama in the sun, rain and calm, giving him the impetus to fight despite all the intimidations and frustrations placed on his path. 

While the list is many, three people stand: His wife, Lordina Mahama, his former chief of staff and long-time friend, Julius Debrah and his silent friend and NDC financier, Alhaji Seidu Agongo.

Tower of loyalty

Mrs Mahama is not just a loving and dedicated wife of President Mahama; she is a strong pillar of support behind her husband, which, in no way boosted his morale and galvanised the needed support that ultimately brought him and the NDC to power.

Her humility and desire to support saw her support many communities and people across the country, including her children’s clinics, maternity hospitals and payment of hospital bills for the needy.

She also spent sleepless nights on the campaign trail with her husband, boosting his morale in those gruelling tours.

The haunted Agongo

Another person whose loyalty to President Mahama is without question is Alhaji Agongo, the man who was haunted by the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government immediately it took office. 

A businessman and philanthropist par excellence, Alhaji Agongo’s association with President Mahama dates back to his Member of Parliament days and has grown and strengthened throughout the period.

His loyalty to President Mahama during and after his days in power even cost him businesses, including the one profitable and budding Heritage Bank Ghana Limited, which was collapsed in 2019 despite being solvent and not found to have breached any banking regulation.

The vindictiveness of the government against him knew no bounds as the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration believed that by destroying him, they would get at President Mahama.  

Over the past eight years, he has spent almost his entire time in court, answering a court case that many see to be political than legal. 

Alhaji Agongo lost all credit facilities and, therefore, could not transact any international business while the political persecution made the local business community to view his companies with suspicion.

Nevertheless, he remained steadfast and never wavered in his support for President Mahama.  

He offered his every support, using his financial and media resources to support the Mahama and NDC campaigns.

Despite the collapse of his businesses and the freezing of his bank accounts, Alhaji Agongo continued with his loyalty to his friend, President Mahama by embarking on philanthropy, supporting the disadvantaged in society, paying school fees on behalf of brilliant and needy students and constructing health facilities in some parts of the country.

The Debrah factor 

His former Chief of Staff, Mr Debrah is one person the party cannot ignore. 

He remained loyal to President Mahama, moving things behind the scenes and galvanizing the youth behind the Mahama brand.  

He is not your usual loud politician but a strategic close associate, humble and ever-prepared to offer any assistance within his power.   

The mention of his name among party faithful is often followed by testimonies of his willingness to support anything Mahama and NDC.

What next?

In a partisan country like ours, one cannot take loyalty for granted, especially at such a crucial period when Ghanaians are expecting so much from the presidency of Mahama to reset the country and put it on the path of recovery.  

This is the time he can count on the loyalty and commitment of his close loyalists who stood with him during critical times in the past and who are still available to assist him make the right choices and offer the proper advice. 

As President Mahama’s second presidency is about to begin, many will watch with interest what becomes of that loyalty in the eight years in the wilderness.

As an experienced politician and leader, President Mahama obviously values loyalty and knows how to separate blind loyalty, as has been the case with this trio and many others from the fair weather ones that are all over the place.