New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Chairman hopeful, Awentami Paul Afoko, has begun the second phase of high-level consultative meetings with key figures in the party, including former Vice President and 2024 presidential candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former President John Agyekum Kufuor, and former Assin Central Member of Parliament, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong.
Ahead of the party’s presidential primary on January 31, 2026, Mr Afoko also met all five aspirants, including Dr Bryan Acheampong, Ing. Kwabena Agyei Agyepong and Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, as part of efforts to promote unity within the party.
Sources close to Mr Afoko said the courtesy calls and stakeholder consultations form part of a nationwide engagement strategy ahead of the NPP’s upcoming National Delegates Conference.
Mr Afoko, who served as NPP National Chairman from 2014 to 2015, is campaigning on a 3R Agenda — Reunite, Rebuild, Recapture — which he says is aimed at returning the party to power in 2028.
His team said the engagements are intended to draw on the experience of senior party figures, listen to concerns, and build consensus on the party’s direction following its defeat in the 2024 general election.
“You cannot rebuild a house by ignoring the architects,” a member of Mr Afoko’s team told reporters.
“He’s meeting the people who have led this party at the highest level. Their wisdom matters.”
The meetings with Dr Bawumia and former President Akufo-Addo are seen as significant due to their continued influence within the party, while the visit to former President Kufuor highlights Mr Afoko’s emphasis on institutional memory and party unity.
His engagements with leading figures are also viewed as an attempt to bridge internal divisions within the party.
Although details of the discussions remain private, sources said Mr Afoko stressed the need to “put all hands on deck” and avoid internal blame games.
He is also reported to have reiterated his call for the party to prioritise “competence over ethnicity” in electing its next National Chairman.
The consultative tour follows similar meetings held weeks earlier with the Ashanti Regional Council of Elders and Ashanti Regional Executives in Kumasi.
Following the formal declaration of his intention to contest the position, Mr Afoko has embarked on a nationwide outreach campaign to engage party stakeholders and grassroots leaders.
Party insiders say the meetings suggest he is “testing the waters and mending fences”.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com