The Member of Parliament for Old Tafo Constituency in the Ashanti Region, Vincent Ekow Asefuah, has admitted that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) misused the electoral power entrusted to it by Ghanaians from 2016 to 2024, resulting in the party’s worst performance in the 2024 elections.
Speaking on Kumasi-based Hello FM’s political talk show on Saturday, February 8, 2025, hosted by King Edward, monited by www.kumasimail.com Mr.Asefuah acknowledged that the party had lost its appeal to Ghanaians, including the expatriate business community earlier before the elections.
“It got to a point where our party was no longer attractive to Ghanaians, including the expatriate community in Ghana,” he disclosed.
He explained that there was excessive abuse of power, affecting both Ghanaians and foreign businesses operating in the country.
“The actions and inactions of President Nana Akufo-Addo, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, their families, and other government appointees completely let the party down,” he stated.
Asefuah highlighted that in industrial areas such as Tema, where foreign-owned businesses, including those run by Chinese, Indian, and other expatriate communities, thrive, many business owners campaigned against the NPP due to what they perceived as hostile policies and intimidation from certain individuals within the party.
“In Tema, some of these expatriates, who run major private businesses, actively campaigned against us because of the intimidation they suffered under the NPP government. Some party members and their families, who were controlling government affairs, engaged in unfriendly activities that negatively impacted the business community,” he reiterated.
Citing specific instances, he said, “If I am a Chinese businessman operating legally in Ghana with about 800 staff members, and I face intimidation, why wouldn’t I incite my workers against the government? I visited some companies in Tema, and Ashanti employees openly told me, ‘Honorable, we voted against the NPP because of how your government treated our boss”.
He further lamented that despite these issues, senior government officials failed to engage with the grassroots and campaign effectively during the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.
Expressing his frustration, Asefuah questioned why national security operatives were deployed to target businesses in an aggressive manner.
When asked by King Edward whether he was aware of the consequences of the actions taken by powerful individuals within the party against the business community, the Old Tafo MP admitted that he was aware of some unfortunate developments but had no authority to challenge those responsible.
” Senior wasn’t unaware of these developments until after we lost power, when some of the affected business owners came forward to disclose their experiences. In any case who are you to question these people’’ he revealed.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
