Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the 2024 Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has pointed to a range of factors behind the party's defeat in the 2024 general elections, including economic hardships, policy missteps, and internal disunity.
Speaking at the auditorium of Takoradi Technical University during the launch of his nationwide "Thank You Tour," Dr. Bawumia candidly outlined the challenges that contributed to the NPP's electoral loss.
According to him, the rising cost of living, the failure to heed calls for a government reshuffle, the unpopular introduction of the E-Levy, and the controversial Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) all played major roles in eroding public support.
“When you study all the reports we have so far, certain factors were highlighted. These include the high cost of living; the prices of goods and services went up and left many Ghanaians struggling. Another factor that was highlighted is the arrogance of power; we were not willing to listen," Dr. Bawumia stated.
He added that despite calls from within the party to reshuffle government officials after several years in office, those appeals were ignored. "The party members told us to conduct a reshuffle, but after eight years we didn’t listen," he said. "They also opposed the E-Levy, but we went ahead to implement it. Again, the party members warned that the DDEP was going to be a major challenge, but we proceeded with it."
Dr. Bawumia also pointed to the government's inability to pay beneficiaries under key social intervention programs such as NABCO, the Youth in Afforestation programme, and school feeding caterers, which he said deepened public discontent.
Addressing claims that his religious background cost the NPP the election, Dr. Bawumia dismissed such assertions, emphasizing instead that internal divisions and the failure to complete critical projects weakened the party’s campaign efforts. He acknowledged that even in traditional NPP strongholds like the Western Region, campaign activities were inadequate.
“Even in the regions that give us some votes, we didn’t put in a lot of work there. Western Region is an example,” he noted.
He further stressed that the NPP's lack of unity allowed the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to capitalize on their mistakes. "The opposition, even though it didn’t have a strong campaign message, simply played back our internal criticisms against us," Dr. Bawumia said. "That is why it is important that as we go about with our campaign, you don’t bring down your opponent just because you want to win."
Dr. Bawumia’s Thank You Tour is expected to take him across the country as he engages party supporters and stakeholders following the NPP’s loss in the 2024 elections.
