When on July 29, 2025, main opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) opened nominations for its presidential primary, it marked another definitive move in its Election 2028 campaign, following its Annual National Delegates Conference.
Notably, the conference had been preceded by a surprise announcement about the presidential primary date.
On June 17, 2025 the NPP National Executive Committee sprang what for some was a bombshell, that this time, the presidential primary would be held early, on January 31, 2026, not later, as had been the norm. Nominations will close on August 28.
Announcing the early primary decision, General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua, had stated that it was endorsed by the party’s National Council and did not require a constitutional amendment or further approval.
By many accounts the 2025 conference of the party whose symbol, incidentally, is an elephant, was a huge success, for which the organising committee, chaired by former Bekwai MP Joe Osei Owusu, has been commended.
Still, though no pun is intended, it appears that at the conference there was an ‘elephant in the room’.
The English idiom, ‘elephant in the room’ is explained as “a major problem or controversial issue which is obviously present but is avoided as a subject for discussion.
So, was there truly such a situation at the NPP conference, themed ‘Rebuilding together with our values’ and held on Saturday, July 19, 2025 at the University of Ghana stadium, Legon?
To me, indeed there was!
I believe that trouble might have been expected, because some dissenting NPP members had sworn publicly to have the January date included on the agenda so that it would be voted on and decisively rejected.
Discontent over the early primary was reportedly based on the belief that choosing the presidential candidate so early would give some aspirants an unfair advantage over other prospectives who need more time to market themselves; and was also not the convention.
They have scornfully described it as a ‘top to bottom’ approach, illustrating with the analogy that ‘one doesn’t start building a house from the roof; one constructs the foundation first.’
Furthermore, they have made their views known stridently. A GhanaWeb June 20, 2025 article quoted former flagbearer aspirant Francis Addai Nimo as saying that “a lot of the party faithful are not happy about the 31st January date.”
Others quoted in that article included Boakye Kyeremateng Agyarko, also a former flagbearer hopeful, who “suggested that the decision was made to serve certain selfish interests within the party … It is total nonsense.”
MP for Mpraeso Davis Opoku: “It doesn’t make sense… How do you put into motion a presidential campaign when the party’s base is about to change?”
Dr Amoako Baah, a senior political scientist: “If you don’t study it carefully, you will not know that someone is behind this. (Former President) Nana Akufo-Addo is behind this, most likely, and he wants certain things to happen, but they will not succeed. …the devil has taken over our party.”
However, Nii Ayikoi Otoo a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, presented other, measured, aspects. In an interview published in the Daily Graphic of June 25, he said it seemed to him that the party’s leadership needed to educate and engage more.
“To some, where a flagbearer is elected before other elections of party executives at all levels are done, that changes what they are used to.
“Some even believe that approach leads to the person elected practicing favouritism and nepotism, using only a small group to run the affairs of the party, especially his campaign team … which will deepen the cracks in the party.
Mr. Otoo explained further that:”… the justification (is) that when the flagbearer is elected early, he will be like an opposition leader who will speak on national issues on behalf of the party.”
He added: “the other view is that nothing had really changed” with the announcement of an early presidential primary “two years before the general election in 2028 since we are in opposition.
“Moreover, the four year-year mandate given to the current party executive would not have expired by January, 2026, and therefore, the party leadership at every level would still be in office by January 2026 and would be voting to select the flagbearer.”
Yet, curiously, despite the threats, as far as l could make out, not a word about that matter was voiced at the Legon conference!
But had the organisers been aware of the threat? Richard Ahiagbah, NPP Director of Communications told me: “We heard the threat but there was no way Conference would have entertained anything of the sort.”
Mr. Ahiagbah added: “The date of the presidential primaries was not a matter before the National Conference. The date remains as decided by the National Council, January 31st…
“Article 10 of our party constitution regulates the business of the National Delegates Conference and stipulates the matters to be considered,” he said.
Given that clear position, I’m wondering whether those making threats did not know that the subject could not even feature on the agenda.
Was it a matter of poor information flow, ignorance of the rules, or deliberate mischief? Puzzling, to say the least!
For the record, the conference, attended by more than 5000 delegates, including overseas branches, voted and agreed on some significant constitutional amendments.
As reported by Citinewsroom, the party “announced a major amendment to its internal electoral structure, expanding the Electoral College that will select its presidential candidate for the 2028 general election.
Accordingly, the new Electoral College will now include:
* All former Members of Parliament
* All former parliamentary candidates
* All former Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives
* All card-bearing former ministers and deputy ministers
* All former regional, constituency, and branch executives
* All members of the National Council of Elders and National Council of Patrons
* Regional and constituency patrons and elders, and,
* All Tertiary Students Confederacy (TESCON) coordinators.
So far, identified flagbearer aspirants are: Dr Bawumia; Kennedy Agyapong; Dr Yaw Osei-Adutwum; Dr Bryan Acheampong and Kwabena Agyepong.
Evidently, the landslide Election 2024 win for then candidate John Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC), means that whoever becomes the NPP’s 2028 flagbearer, the party needs a lot more time and effort to regroup and restrategise to try and wrestle power from the ruling NDC.
Therefore, it seems to me that choosing the 2028 presidential candidate early is a good idea.
It should help focus the party’s energy on the battle ahead, instead of the many divisions and distractions. Currently, the war of disparagements of other hopefuls by rival supporters, presents the NPP in a very ugly image. And evidently this can’t contribute to any electoral victory.
Ironically, when they meet in public, there is no such animosity among the flagbearer hopefuls.
But who knows what their camps tell, or signal their followers behind the scenes?
Besides, the suggestion that some of the hopefuls need more time to make themselves and their ideas known to the delegates sounds somewhat strange to me. Surely by now they, as well as their proposed policies, are known to the delegates!
Critics have made no secret of their concern that an early primary will benefit the former Vice President, Dr, Mahamudu Bawumia, and that the decision has been taken to favour him.
However, the party leaders insist that nothing has been done to give anybody an advantage.
It appears that in the opponents’ view, their defeat in Election 2024 was because the country doesn’t want Dr, Bawumia as President, so he shouldn’t even contest for 2028.
Conversely, Dr, Bawumia’s supporters argue that there are no findings that support this view; that the defeat was mainly due to the apathy of the aggrieved over two million NPP members who refused to vote. To them, a plus is that the country already knows Bawumia, and his achievements.
If, as his opponents are claiming, Dr, Bawumia was really the reason for the party’s unprecedented defeat, would the delegates themselves not know that? Clearly if the delegates, too, have the same opinion as Dr, Bawumia’s opponents, then an early primary would in no way help him because the defeat agony would still be fresh in the minds of the delegates.
Or, does their hostility rather stem from fear of the Bawumia appeal? Another elephant in the room?
Anyhow, my belief is that whoever emerges as NPP flagbearer will be determined to work hard to unite the party, aiming to bring everybody on board, haunted and driven by the 2024 historic defeat.
Furthermore, if after a flagbearer has been chosen, disgruntled elements decide to work against their own party, or even opt out because their candidate lost, they should obviously not be considered real, committed party members.
Then undoubtedly their allegiance is for an individual, and not the NPP.
And surely, loyalty and commitment are what sustain and power parties to victory. Anyway, one hopes that the Legon outcomes, and deeper reflection, have helped to change the ‘elephant in the room’ situation.
An elephant should remain a symbol of positive attributes for the party, including strength, wisdom, stability, good fortune, peace and achievement; and only seen on the NPP flag, not in their room.
By Ajoa Yeboah-Afari