‘Selfish’ discourse on Akufo-Addo’s 2024 replacement premature – Prof Gyampo to NPP

A Senior Lecturer at the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana says it is premature for names to be suggested as potential flagbearers for the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) for election 2024.

Prof Ransford Gyampo believes the phenomenon which has brewed over the past few weeks reeks of selfishness and sways away from government’s priority of ensuring the development of the country.

“There were serious challenges with the first term of the Akufo-Addo administration that led to the kind of results for the party in the 2020 elections.

“These challenges have to be dealt with even as the President strives to leave a legacy,” he said Sunday in an article.

Describing it as a “needless show of selfishness and a distraction,” the Political Science professor wonders why such a discourse will come up at a time when key government actors such as Deputy Ministers, Boards and heads of other state institutions, MMDCEs are yet to be appointed.

Over the past few weeks, Vice President, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia; Trade Minister, Alan Kyerematen; Agriculture Minister, Dr Afriyie Akoto-Osei; among others have been thrown into the fray as harbouring presidential ambitions.

In March, NPP Chairman Freddie Blay cautioned such persons and their supporters to desist from campaigning until further notice.

In an article Sunday, Prof Gyampo said, “as the NPP thinks about whoever would replace the President, they must be mindful of the fact that the NDC would strategically elect their most popular person, who has also produced an unprecedented election results in the history of Ghana’s Fourth Republic.”

“Any political party worth its salt, must ab initio, know who can lead it to victory and who can lead it to defeat. Once this is known, the “talkings” must commence immediately the time comes for the discourse on who must lead the party.

“It is also Democratic to identify and reach out timeously, to people whose candidature can generate schisms and hurt a party’s electoral fortunes, for the purposes of dialogue, (not force and intimidation) with a view to getting them to rather support a candidate who can, at the minimum, make an impending election keenly competitive,” he said.

He further advised the elders of the NPP to desist from taking sides, engaging in ‘loose talks’ and rather play a reconciliatory role in unifying the party going forward.

“They must watch whatever is going on and act swiftly when appropriate, in closing ranks. For if the NDC in 2020 wasn’t a walk-over, it’s potential in the next election is palpably indubitable,” the lecturer added.