Former National Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, and communications team member Awal Mohammed are reportedly being considered for deputy communications positions under the newly elected National Communications Director, Dennis Miracles Aboagye.
The move is said to be part of efforts by the NPP leadership to accommodate defeated factions and foster unity following Saturday’s bruising national delegates conference in Kumasi, where both suffered setbacks in their respective bids for national executive positions.
Mr Ahiagbah, who contested the First Vice Chairman position, lost the race, while Mr Mohammed also suffered defeat in his bid for the National Nasara Coordinator position.
Party insiders told The Archives that the proposed appointments are intended to prevent the defeated aspirants and their supporters from becoming disgruntled and to consolidate the party ahead of the next general election.
However, it remains unclear whether Mr Ahiagbah would accept a deputy role under Mr Aboagye, particularly given that Mr Aboagye previously served under him when he was National Communications Director.
Mr Mohammed lost the Nasara Organiser contest to Alhaji Ali Suraj, a former presidential staffer and campaign coordinator for former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in the Asawase Constituency.
Mr Suraj polled 372 votes to beat his closest contender, Alhaji Saalim Mansur Bamba, who obtained 311 votes, while Mr Mohammed secured 106 votes.
Tribal Argument
Ahead of the election, Mr Ahiagbah sought to highlight his Ewe identity, arguing that his defeat would create an unfavourable image for the party.
In an interview with Citi News, which subsequently went viral, he said the party would have a problem if he became the only Ewe among the 13 candidates contesting national executive positions to lose.
“Without Richard Ahiagbah, we have a problem. The party will look someway that out of the 13 people contesting for a position, the only Ewe in it has been voted out. That will be a very bad look for the party,” he said.
‘Buga’ to Protect NPP Votes
Meanwhile, the newly elected NPP National Communications Director, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has vowed that the party will combine strategy with what he described as “buga” to protect its votes during the 2028 general election.
Mr Aboagye said the NPP would not allow a repeat of what he alleged were disruptions to the handling and collation of ballot papers and other electoral materials during the 2024 election.
Speaking on The Pulse on JoyNews, he insisted that the party’s position was not intended to undermine the Electoral Commission (EC), but to ensure that election materials were protected throughout the electoral process.
He called on the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to allow the EC and the police to perform their respective duties without interference.
“All they need to do is to simply stand by. Let the Electoral Commission do their work. Let the police do their work,” he said.
“Let the ballots be cast, let it be counted, let the pink sheet be filled, and let everybody go home.”
Mr Aboagye, however, warned that the NPP would respond if it believed there were attempts to interfere with the electoral process.
“But if they don’t and they think that what they did in 2024 will happen again, there’s going to be a combination of strategy and a combination of buga,” he said.
“Both of them will be combined. We are not going to drop one for the other. That error will not be committed again.”
He further declared that the NPP would not allow anyone to interfere with ballot papers or ballot boxes during the 2028 election.
“Nobody is going to allow anybody to destroy a single ballot paper or ballot box in this country. It would not happen,” he said.
Bamba to Lead Ballot Protection
Mr Aboagye said the responsibility for protecting the NPP’s votes would be a key responsibility of the party’s newly elected First Vice Chairman, Kojo Fosu Bamba, popularly known as Chairman Bamba.
“Chairman Bamba is responsible for that department,” he said.
Asked whether the party intended to deploy people to protect the ballot on election day, Mr Aboagye responded in the affirmative.
“Yes. On election day. Yes, on election day. Why not?”
He said the party had learnt lessons from the 2024 election and would take steps to prevent what he described as attacks on ballot boxes and other electoral materials.
According to him, the NPP was forced to bring ballots from several constituencies to the police headquarters for counting during the 2024 election because of disruptions at some collation centres.
He cited Ablekuma North, Nsawam and Okaikwei Central as examples, alleging that NDC supporters attacked or disrupted the electoral process at those locations.
“The NDC unleashed vigilantes to go to Ablekuma North, to go and burn ballot boxes. Went to Nsawam, invaded the collation centre, tore them apart. Okaikwei Central. And so many other places in this country,” he alleged.
“That will not happen again, and take it from me. Chairman Bamba is responsible for that department,” he added.
Mr Aboagye said the decision to strengthen the party’s ballot protection arrangements was also informed by what he described as concerns about the ability of the police to fully secure electoral materials.
“The police are telling us that they can’t protect the ballot,” he claimed.
He insisted that the NPP could not afford to ignore what it considered lessons from the 2024 election.
“There are videos of these NDC vigilantes all over 2024 destroying ballot materials,” he said.
‘40,000 Ballot Boxes Will Be Protected’
Mr Aboagye said the NPP would take steps to protect all ballot boxes used in the 2028 election.
“Each of the 40,000 or 40 over 40,000 ballot boxes will be protected by the NPP,” he said.
He warned that the party would not sit idly by if electoral materials were threatened.
“Because if we fail to protect it, the police will sit down for Mustapha Gbande and his people to run amok in this country and destroy ballot boxes, take apart pink sheets and everything. It will not happen,” he added.
He also cited an alleged incident at Abuakwa North, where he claimed NDC supporters blocked an Electoral Commission vehicle transporting ballot boxes after voting and counting had ended.
According to him, the ballot boxes were subsequently seized and damaged.
“These NDC hoodlums went to block the Electoral Commission vehicle, snatched the ballot boxes and started tearing it apart,” he alleged.
“And you think that as a party, we should sit down and let that happen? Call it whatever you want to call it.
If you want to call Chairman Bamba the head of the ballot protection unit of the NPP, that is who it is,” he added.
Mr Aboagye stressed, however, that the First Vice Chairman’s responsibilities would extend beyond ballot protection, although he maintained that safeguarding the party’s votes would be a major priority.
“If Bamba’s sole responsibility as vice chairman will be to help protect the NPP’s ballot, that so be it,” he said.
