By Daniel Bampoe
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has intensified its pushback against political pollster Mussa Dankwah, accusing him of fueling division and suspicion within the party through continuous polling on the party’s 2028 presidential succession race.
The latest warning came from the party’s Deputy General Secretary in charge of Operations, Mustapha Gbande, who openly criticized the Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics during an interview on Citi FM, saying the pollster’s activities were becoming a dangerous distraction to the governing party.
Mustapha Gbande revealed that he had personally contacted Dankwah to express concerns over the frequency and impact of the polls, despite acknowledging the pollster’s professional reputation.
“I’ve had cause to call Mussa Dankwah and tell him that we respect the work he does,” Mustapha Gbande stated.
“But I do not think that, as Deputy General Secretary, he is doing well for the NDC. Whatever the motivation is, that motivation is not helping the NDC.”
According to him, the repeated publication of internal presidential preference polls was gradually creating mistrust and unhealthy competition among party stakeholders at a time when the NDC should be focused on governance and national development.
How Mussa Dankwah Became Central to NDC Succession Politics
Over the past year, Dankwah and his firm, Global InfoAnalytics, have become increasingly influential players in the political discourse through regular polling and political trend analysis with sometimes suspicious results.
The pollster first gained widespread national attention following the 2024 general elections, when some of his projections on the presidential race and voter behaviour appeared close to actual outcomes, boosting the credibility and visibility of his research firm.
Since then, Global InfoAnalytics has released several tracking polls on the NDC’s post-Mahama succession race, measuring support for leading figures expected to contest the party’s future flagbearership.
Among the names frequently featured in the polls are Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, NDC National Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu, Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, and others.
However, the polls have repeatedly triggered controversy within the party, particularly after some key figures, including Chief of Staff Julius Debrah were either excluded or ranked unexpectedly low.
The backlash against Dankwah did not begin with Mustapha Gbande.
Ras Mubarak previously fired Dankwah for excluding Julius Debrah.
Former Kumbungu MP Ras Mubarak had earlier openly attacked one of the Global InfoAnalytics polls for excluding Julius Debrah from the leading contenders in the NDC race.
Mubarak questioned the credibility of any survey that failed to acknowledge Debrah’s growing influence within the party.
“Any poll that does not feature Julius Debrah as a leading candidate should be taken with a very big pinch of salt,” he declared at the time.
His comments reflected broader frustration among some NDC supporters who believed the polls were shaping political perceptions and artificially elevating some aspirants over others.
The controversy deepened after Julius Debrah’s growing grassroots popularity through nationwide “keep fit” walks and political engagements began attracting attention within the party.
Mustapha Gbande argued that Dankwah’s continuous polling was now becoming destructive.
“Mussa Dankwah’s polling is bringing suspicion and division within our party and our government,” he said.
He maintained that the NDC has never traditionally relied on external polling to determine leadership and warned that the constant public ranking of aspirants was undermining party cohesion.
Mustapha Gbande stressed that internal party leadership contests are determined by delegates and party structures not public opinion surveys.
“NDC primaries are for NDC people,” he stated.
According to him, the obsession with polling risks creating camps and factions long before the party officially opens nominations for the 2028 race.
NDC Orders Members To Boycott Poll Interviews
In a dramatic escalation, Mustapha Gbande disclosed that he had circulated notices across party structures directing members not to participate in research interviews connected to such polls.
“I have sent a notice around that no party member should grant any research interview to anybody,” he revealed.
The move effectively amounts to an unofficial boycott of Global InfoAnalytics surveys by the party.
Although Mustapha Gbande denied attempting to destroy Dankwah’s business, he insisted the party had not sanctioned any polling activity regarding its future leadership race.
“If we want to do a poll within our party, we will do it,” he added.
Dankwah Hits Back: ‘No One Can Stop Polling’
Mussa Dankwah has, however, rejected the criticism and defended his work.
In response to Mustapha Gbande’s comments, Dankwah questioned whether the Deputy General Secretary was speaking on behalf of the entire party or expressing personal frustration.
“Can he stop the public from taking part in public opinion?” Mussa Dankwah asked.
He argued that opinion polling is a legitimate democratic tool used to measure political sentiment and public preferences.
“The only means by which you will know the views of your fellow citizens or delegates is through public opinion polls,” he said.
Mussa Dankwah further accused some NDC figures of hypocrisy, noting that party supporters often celebrate polls showing strong approval ratings for President Mahama or advantages over the opposition NPP, but reject surveys dealing with internal succession.
“You can’t hail polls on the performance of your president and at the same time hate polls on who could replace the president as the leader of your party,” he stated.
Debate Over NDC’s Future Intensifies
The dispute highlights growing tension within the NDC over succession politics as President John Dramani Mahama approaches the midpoint of his second and constitutionally final term.
Although Mahama has repeatedly stated he will not seek a third term, discussions over who succeeds him have intensified quietly behind the scenes.
The absence of a clear frontrunner has created fierce competition among various camps within the party, with polling data increasingly becoming both influential and controversial.
