I started writing this article three weeks before the by-election in Assin North and that was why I knew that NPP was going to lose that by-election. They made a lot of silly mistakes leading to the election and I was surprised they didn’t correct them before their defeat.
The first silly mistake was fielding a candidate from Hon Quayson’s hometown Assin Breku, who couldn’t vote for himself, and therefore not in touch with the voters. The NPP had little time to sell Charles Owusu and to make matters worse, he didn’t have a message. He didn’t even speak throughout the campaign, not even during the last rally.
Another silly mistake was that they spent all their time talking about the bad court case and the possibility of jailing Quayson. Under the circumstances of Joe Quayson, every smart politician would know that, that would attract sympathy votes for him. The President used his whole speech talking about it and ended up saying his own candidate was useless. Who would vote for a useless candidate?
Another silly mistake they made was that the reconciliation process between Charles Owusu and their 2020 parliamentary candidate wasn’t completed. They took the process for granted and acted as if Assin North was their stronghold. This weakness is bound to happen again between Dr. Bawumiah and Alan.
The whole planning of the by-election was done so poorly. It was like blind people planning a wedding. This caused Dr. Bawumiah to armbush Alan when Alan was speaking on the stage. The by-election was planned around Dr. Bawumiah and their defeat is coming again in 2024.
One major silly mistake they made was to let Akua Donkor appear on that big platform with Nana Addo. Most of the NPP folks stayed home because of Akua Donkor. She is the embodiment of a joke in Ghanaian politics.
I don’t know what the NPP was relying on, but their expectations were too high. They behaved like they were in their stronghold, where some people there don’t think. Their messages were all about winning power and not about the welfare of the Assin North people.
Another silly mistake was by sending all the government machinery to Assin North to occupy space. That made them think that they have the people to vote for them, but that was just an imagination. If the people who went there were given proper roles, Akua Donkor wouldn’t be on the platform with Nana Addo.
What equally got the NPP losing in Assin North was that they have a silly National Organizer. Nana B, failed as a Youth Organizer but the NPP promoted him for that. If the NPP want to be a force in 2024, they need to find a new National Organizer before January 2024. Nana B talks too much without any actions and results.
Assin North MP-elect: Hon. Gyakye Quayson (58%)
Dr. Lawrence is the Founder of the Diaspora Progressive Movement in USA.
Source: ghanaelection.com
