Former Member of Parliament for Assin Central and New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential aspirant, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, has raised concerns over the timing of the party’s upcoming presidential primaries.
Speaking at the NPP Constituency Chairmen Conference held on Saturday, June 21, 2025, Mr. Agyapong stated that the party will lose the 2028 elections if internal issues are not solved.
Mr. Agyapong said, “We formed Mike Oquaye’s team to do fact-finding, to check and come up with the results or the findings. But as we sit here, those who matter in the party, that have to know the causes of our defeat, we don’t. All we know is Mike Oquaye came to brief us and said expansion. So are we saying because of expansion that we lost miserably? We have not answered that. Then why do you jump to go and conduct election to elect presidential candidate? I’ll be brutally frank, if you don’t solve those problems, you can bring Jesus Christ as your presidential candidate, we’re still not going to make it.”
He questioned the January 31, 2026, date for the presidential primaries, a decision ratified by the party’s National Executive Committee and National Council to provide sufficient time for internal campaigning and reconciliation.
Mr. Agyapong expressed dissatisfaction with what he sees as the party’s failure to address the root causes of its defeat in the 2024 general elections before proceeding to select a new flagbearer.
“I’ll tell you the truth. Because all of us here that are going to campaign, what message are we going to give? We don’t know the causes of our defeat. So I’m of the opinion that we solve all these internal problems before we rush to go and select a presidential candidate. Honestly, if we don’t solve these problems, and you think by electing a presidential candidate, he can solve the problems, I’m afraid we’re joking. A presidential candidate cannot solve the problem alone, all of us, it’s collective effort and collective responsibility.”
His remarks come amid growing calls from party stalwarts for the leadership to release the internal report compiled by a committee led by former Speaker of Parliament, Professor Mike Oquaye.
The report was commissioned to evaluate the NPP’s performance and investigate the reasons behind the party’s loss in 2024.
However, the party leadership maintains that the report is for internal use only and will not be made public.
Political analysts have echoed Agyapong’s sentiments, arguing that any genuine effort at party renewal must begin with openness, transparency, and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths.
So far, four prominent party members have declared their intentions to contest the flagbearer slot: Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Dr. Bryan Acheampong, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, and Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Hamdia Mohammed
