BY Daniel Bampoe
As the New Patriotic Party (NPP) counts down to its January 31, 2026 flagbearer election, deep-seated internal divisions are increasingly undermining its effectiveness as the main opposition, raising questions about whether the party can realistically regroup to challenge the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the 2028 general elections.
Historically, factionalism has not been alien to the NPP. From the era of former President John Agyekum Kufuor to that of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the party managed competing power blocs under one broad ideological roof.
Though disagreements were often intense, they were largely contained within party structures, allowing the NPP to project a united front during national contests.
Even the bruising internal rivalry between Alan Kyerematen and Nana Akufo-Addo, which dominated the party’s internal politics for years, was managed through compromise and political pragmatism, rather than outright implosion.
That delicate balance, however, appears to have collapsed in the post-Akufo-Addo era. With the former president now politically inactive and Alan Kyerematen having exited the party following his defeat in the 2023 primaries, the NPP has entered a new and more volatile phase.
Former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has emerged as the centrist figure around whom the party’s official machinery largely revolves, positioning himself as the frontrunner in the upcoming primaries.
Yet, instead of consolidating opposition against the governing NDC, internal hostilities have intensified.
A significant source of tension lies in the political behaviour of supporters of former Assin Central MP Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, another leading contender in the flagbearer race.
Unlike previous factions that competed internally while maintaining collective opposition to the ruling party, this bloc has increasingly found itself at odds with the NPP’s core opposition role.
In several instances where the NDC government has faced public criticism or scandal, elements aligned with Kennedy Agyapong have either remained conspicuously silent or actively rebuked fellow NPP members who sought to hold the government accountable.
This has created the unusual spectacle of opposition figures appearing to defend the NDC government while attacking their own party colleagues.
Compounding this crisis are remnants of Alan Kyerematen’s support base who chose not to follow him out of the NPP.
These party members have largely disengaged from confronting the NDC, focusing instead on sustained criticism of Dr. Bawumia. For them, the primary political contest appears less about winning power from the ruling party and more about settling unresolved grievances from past internal defeats.
Political analysts note that what is unfolding within the NPP goes beyond healthy factional competition.
Rather than a struggle over ideas, strategy, or leadership direction, the party is exhibiting symptoms of internal sabotage, where sections of its own membership undermine collective objectives.
This internal misalignment has weakened the party’s messaging, diluted its opposition credibility, and inadvertently strengthened the NDC by allowing government actions to go insufficiently challenged.
With barely 27 days to the decisive flagbearer election, the NPP leadership is expected to initiate post-primary unity talks, reconciliation tours, and symbolic displays of togetherness, a familiar ritual following contested internal elections.
However, critics argue that such exercises risk addressing symptoms rather than the root cause.
The central challenge is no longer merely healing bruised egos but confronting the reality that some actors within the party may no longer be invested in its electoral success.
As January 31 approaches, the stakes are therefore higher than the selection of a presidential candidate.
The contest is shaping up as a referendum on the NPP’s identity and purpose as a political organisation.
A party that expends more energy attacking itself than scrutinising the government, analysts warn, risks entering the 2028 race already weakened from within.
Ultimately, the arithmetic of opposition politics remains unforgiving: a party cannot hope to defeat a governing opponent while segments of its own ranks appear to shield that opponent from criticism.
Whether the NPP can rediscover a shared sense of mission, or whether it will continue on a path of internal attrition, may well determine not only the outcome of its primaries, but its relevance in the next electoral cycle.
