Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, a hopeful presidential candidate for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has identified a significant factor contributing to the party’s defeat in the 2024 general elections: a widespread failure of their supporters to turn out and vote.
Agyepong highlighted a stark contrast in the NPP’s performance between the 2020 and 2024 elections.
In 2020, the party garnered over 6.7 million votes, surpassing President John Dramani Mahama’s 6.2 million.
However, these figures took a considerable dip in 2024. While President Mahama saw an increase in his votes to 6.4 million, the NPP’s vote count plummeted significantly to 4.6 million.
He shared these observations during an interview on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM’s Frontline programme.
To recover and rebuild, Agyepong strongly advised the party to prioritise unity, discipline, and mutual respect, urging members to abandon all forms of hatred and bitterness.
“When you examine the figures for 2024, our party members simply refused to turn up in their numbers and vote,” he explained.
“In 2020, we polled over 6.7 million, while Mahama had 6.2 million. Now, he’s moved to 6.4 million, and we’re down to 4.6 million. These figures clearly show that our party members didn’t vote.”
He continued, “So, we have a crucial responsibility to foster party unity, maintain discipline, and abandon bitterness, hatred, and divisiveness. This is essential to make our party stronger and a viable alternative for the future.”
He told host Kwabena Agyapong that he doesn’t believe in elitism, stressing that every Ghanaian voter is equally entitled to one vote.
“What’s most important is that our supporters remain committed and dedicated to the party. We must do our utmost to address all existing challenges to prevent our members from becoming agitated. We need to consult broadly when making decisions in the party’s interest and clearly explain to members why we take certain decisions. Even if they don’t initially agree, they will accept them in the interest of the party without harbouring any hatred or bitterness for the NPP. We should never, ever neglect our grassroots,” he added.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
