The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has been embroiled in massive political scandals from November last year till date and this has placed a dent in its aspiration to retain political power in the impending 2024 General Elections in December. As such, one may say that the NPP is aiming for the impossible.
Despite the party’s attempt to salvage its reputation with the general public, the NPP continues to yield to scandal one after the other like the proverbial moth to a flame. As if the scandals are not enough signs of internal friction have begun to emerge as major personalities are being excluded from the party’s preparation towards the election.
“This is a party sinking; in fact they have already sank, a party in tatters. Their Majority Leader has resigned, Members of Parliament are turning down appointments from government because they know government is heading into opposition. The center cannot hold in the NPP, even their Communication Director has been completely ostracized and neglected from their campaign committee”.
Esq. Sammy Adu Gyamfi
The foremost humiliation the NPP endured was in 2023 during the party’s Presidential primary election held on November 4th among four candidates; Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia – who emerged victorious –, Mr. Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, Mr. Alan Kyerematen and Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto.
The Presidential primaries ended with Mr. Alan Kyerematen parting ways with the NPP and forming a movement, a situation the NPP disapproved of and expelled all the supporters of Alan Kyerematen. The NPP’s issue however, was not Alan leaving but the number of electorates he had pulled with him, leaving the NPP with a deficit in its voter bank.
“To all Party faithfuls who were hitherto supporting Mr. Kyerematen by virtue of his membership in the party, though it is disappointing and distressing, we urge you to continue supporting the Party in our quest to break the eight (8). Together we shall overcome the challenges…”
NPP Communications Team
After the Presidential primaries came the Parliamentary primary elections which saw many incumbent Members of Parliament being voted out, 28 of them in total. Before the Primaries, 18 of NPP’s incumbent MPs stated their intent not to contest anymore. This will result in the loss of experienced legislators in the NPP parliamentary wing in the next government.
Furthermore, the NPP’s flagbearer’s Presidential bid launch on February 7 2024, generated issues that are still topics of discussion in the political sphere. In his address, the Vice President made an unpopular comment that lost him the favor of the public, and losing public favor is generally bad for any election.
The Vice President stated, “I am a driver’s mate, not the driver”, a comment many Ghanaians interpreted as an attempt to absolve himself of any role he played in Ghana’s economic despairs and brings to question his trustworthiness.
“The new policies that I am proposing to implement in 2025 will give us the fiscal space to eliminate some taxes such as the VAT on electricity (if still on the books), the emissions tax, and the betting tax without compromising our deficit target”.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia
Sadly the Vice President did not outline any concrete solution for unemployment which is the most prevalent In addition to that the NPP also came under attack for conducting a poor cabinet reshuffle right after the Vice President’s address. The public generally did not resonate with the reshuffle as the number of the cabinet remained the same after several years of asking the current administration to cut down the size of the government.
Concerns for the party’s internal harmony arose when two members of the party, Dr Nana Ayew Afriye and Kwaku Agyeman Kwarteng, representing the Effiduase Asokore constituency and Obuasi West Constituency in the Ashanti Region respectively, turned down the President’s appointment to the cabinet.
The reshuffle also concreted the fact that the NPP is not a listening government. It also cemented in some members of the public, a distrust in the government and anything or anyone related to it and that includes the party’s flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.
More Chaos in Political ‘Haven’
Moreover, the recent revelation of the Public Accounts Committees on the defunct Agyapa Royalties deal further plummeted the public’s trust in the government and the NPP as a whole. According to the committee, a whopping sum of USD 12 million was spent on a deal that was terminated halfway.
The opposition NDC used this to its advantage as it continued to drag the already muddied NPP in the dirt, accusing it of massive corruption.
“When the matter was probed further, the CEO of the MIIF stated that this colossal amount was spent on the setting up of the stinky “Agyapa” Royalties vehicle, the payment of consultancy fees, the rental of office space, and the processes leading to the Initial Public Offering towards the listing of “Agyapa” Royalties on the London Stock Exchange”.
Esq. Sammy Adu Gyamfi
Transparency International has described Ghana’s latest Corruption Perception Index (CPI) as the highest since 1995 as Ghana scored 46.6% ranking 70th among 180 countries.
Also, the recent parliamentary reshuffle conducted by the party has caused a lot of internal tension regarding the resignation of the former Majority Leader in parliament. While some believe it is the right course of action to take, others believe the Majority Leader has been forced to resign. Either way, the party has lost a fine parliamentarian.
This led to some tension in the party; before the formal announcement was made, some MPs showed their disapproval of the reshuffle stating their want for leadership in parliament to remain as it is.
“The Majority caucus has not made any change in its leadership…We want to assure you that we have confidence in our leadership as they are, and the status quo shall remain”
Joseph Osei Owusu
The final incident that took the wind out of the NPP’s sail is the report of the Global InfoAnalytics which predicted a 53.2% win for Presidential candidate, Mr. John Dramani Mahama and a parliamentary majority of 52.1% for the NDC.
The NPP however believes in its ability to retain power in the impending election in December despite these incidents it is embroiled in. The NPP Campaign Committee is confident that it will win the election with proper strategizing.
“There is no easy election anywhere. Even in the Soviet Union…I don’t think Putin takes elections easy. There is nothing called an easy election anywhere. We are going to work hard on the ground…to win an election. Nobody is going to hand us the victory on a silver platter”.
Peter Mac Manu
In conclusion, there are so many inconsistencies in the party’s communication that it is clear the party has some internal cracks that need mending. Be it from party members being sacked for supporting Alan Kyerematen, the conflicting ideas of the government and the Vice President, or the controversies surrounding the Agyapa deal and the parliamentary reshuffle, the NPP does not seem to have things under control. It is clear that the NPP is steering a sinking ship at the verge of capsizing and by its constant failed attempts to show a united front, it appears the NPP knows ‘breaking the eight’ is unattainable.
READ ALSO: Agyapa Royalties Deal: What NDC Stands To Gain From A Probe
