In Kumasi, a group named the Concerned Traders of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has rejected any attempt to reintroduce Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as the party’s candidate and demanded a new flagbearer for the general elections in 2028.
Benjamin Ofori, the group’s spokesperson, said during a press conference on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, that the NPP’s crushing loss in the 2024 elections made it clear that a new and viable candidate was required.
He blamed the party’s electoral defeat on unpopular government policies and what he called the choice of Dr. Bawumia as the “wrong candidate.”
“The assumption that Dr. Bawumia would secure the northern and Islamic votes did not materialize. Instead, the party suffered significant losses in these areas, eroding the gains the NPP had made since 1992,” Ofori stated.
The group emphasized that under Dr. Bawumia’s candidacy, the NPP lost four out of the five northern regions, calling the outcome “embarrassing.”
The traders group also lamented the NPP’s failure to win a single parliamentary seat in the Upper East and Upper West regions, claiming that Dr. Bawumia’s campaign failed to rally Zongo and Christian voters.
They went on to point out that the party lost 58 parliamentary seats nationwide and saw a 24% drop in votes in its stronghold, the Ashanti Region, while even in the Vice President’s home region, the victory margin over former President John Mahama was small in comparison to the 2020 elections.
Ofori emphasized that President Akufo-Addo continuously obtained larger percentages in his losses—49.7% in 2008 and 47.7% in 2012—than Bawumia’s 38.4% in 2024, rejecting parallels to his three previous presidential runs.
The group cautioned that promoting Dr. Bawumia’s candidacy once more would maintain the NPP in opposition for an absolute maximum of 12 years.
“If the party truly wants to return to power in 2028, it must choose a candidate who is a living testimony of good leadership and sound economic policies,” Ofori added.
In order to guarantee that the party chooses a more capable candidate for the upcoming election, they urged party members to oppose any efforts to force Dr. Bawumia as the NPP’s 2028 candidate and demanded a comprehensive analysis of the 2024 election results.
As the party concentrates on reconstruction, the NPP leadership has not yet addressed the issues brought up by the Kumasi-based traders.
Source: Adomonline.com