On that day, the incumbent President, John Mahama, will hand over the reins of power to his successor and President-elect, Nana Akufo-Addo.
It is significant because Mahama lost the Presidential election last month to Akufo-Addo and he (Mahama) conceded defeat. Ordinarily, that is the right thing to do, but in Africa, it is a hard thing for incumbents to do.
In 2010, Laurent Gbagbo of Ivory Coast lost the Presidential election to Alassane Quattara but he refused to step down until he was forced out of power by an international military coalition. Similarly, Yahya Jammeh of Gambia recently lost the Presidential election to Adama Barrow and has declared that he wouldn't step down until fresh elections are conducted. The Gambian handover date is still far (12 days time) so we are yet to see how things will eventually turn out. Thus, the handover in Ghana tomorrow is something worth commending.
Mahama's concession comes over a year after Dr. Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria conceded defeat to Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 Presidential election. This shows that, though slowly, democracy is deepening its roots in Africa, specifically in West Africa.
Mahama's loss won't be the first time an opposition party will be defeating the ruling party in Ghana, but it is the first time an incumbent President is losing his reelection bid. Thus, a second tenure is no longer the right of any incumbent in Ghana, it must be earned.
It is hoped that more adherence to democratic tenets will be seen from countries which profess democracy. The handover tomorrow (which Jammeh may have been invited for) should impress on Jammeh the need to quit while it is not too late in order to save his country from turmoil.
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