Former NPP National Chairman Paul Afoko has announced his intention to contest the party's national chairmanship race, framing his comeback bid as an effort to rebuild a fractured party structure capable of returning Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to the presidency.
Making the announcement on July 14, 2026, Afoko was direct about where he believes the NPP's focus must now lie following its defeat in the 2024 general election.
"Dr Bawumia represents an important opportunity for the NPP and for Ghana," he said. "He must be supported by a party machinery that is united, properly resourced, and ready."
He pushed back against any attempt to reduce the 2024 defeat to a single cause or a single individual, stating, "I do not believe that the setbacks of the 2024 elections should be simplistically placed at the feet of one person.
"Elections are won or lost due to many factors. Organisation, communication, economic conditions, parliamentary dynamics, grassroots morale, public trust, candidate selection, and the national mood all contribute to outcomes."
He urged the party to stop assigning blame and start rebuilding.
"The duty before us now is not to blame. The duty before us is to rebuild this party," he said.
Afoko previously served as NPP National Chairman before being suspended from the role in 2015 amid internal party controversies.
Speaking about his plans should he win the race, Afoko said, "When I am given the honour to serve again as National Chairman, I will work to support our presidential candidate, support our parliamentary candidates, support our constituencies, and restore confidence in the party from the polling station to the national level."
The NPP's internal elections are expected to be among the most closely watched political contests of the second half of 2026 as the party works to reposition itself ahead of the next electoral cycle.
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