Former Member of Parliament for Suame, Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, has admitted that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) anticipated a tough battle in the 2024 general elections but did not expect such a significant margin of defeat.
According to him, the party was aware that the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war had negatively impacted Ghana’s economy, making the electoral contest even more challenging.
Speaking on Abusua FM in an interview with Kojo Marfo monitored by www.kumasimail.com “We knew the 2024 elections would be difficult, but the extent of our defeat was unexpected,” he stated.
Kyei Mensah-Bonsu acknowledged that former President John Dramani Mahama’s campaign message on the economy resonated deeply with Ghanaians, affecting the NPP’s electoral fortunes.
“Mahama’s message on economic hardship really hurt our campaign because Ghanaians were facing the reality of economic difficulties. Unlike in previous campaigns when Candidate Akufo-Addo and former President J.A. Kufuor received overwhelming support, this time, the enthusiasm for the NPP was different,” he explained.
He further noted that the party’s emphasis on digitalization and revenue mobilization failed to connect with voters.
“The people simply didn’t care about us or our message. Our focus on digitalization and its benefits, such as improving revenue collection, was ignored,” he admitted.
Reflecting on the party’s performance in previous elections, he revealed that after the 2020 general elections, the NPP’s parliamentary seats declined significantly, prompting the formation of two committees to investigate the outcome.
“It will shock you to know that even I, as the Majority Leader at the time, do not know the findings of those committees. The report has never been made available to me,” he lamented.
Kyei Mensah-Bonsu further disclosed that during post-election engagements, it became evident that many voters had already decided to vote against the NPP long before election day.
“When I met with the committee investigating our defeat, they told me that some constituencies admitted they had made up their minds to vote against us even before the elections. They told me the people said they were laughing at Dr. Bawumia when he was campaigning and they wanted to tell him to keep his campaign because they were not going to vote for him. I don’t want to go into details, but what I’m hearing from the committee’s findings is disturbing,” he revealed.
Despite acknowledging several factors that contributed to the NPP’s loss, he noted that he would wait for the final report from the committee before making further comments.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
