Founding member and former presidential aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Arthur Kobina Kennedy, says the party must stop presenting former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as a public voice for the party.
According to him, the former President has become a liability in the eyes of the public.
Speaking in an interview on Joy News, monitored by NewsDesksGH on February 3, Dr. Kennedy said the party must honestly assess both its current standing and the public perception of the individuals who speak on its behalf.
“There needs to be what I call a coming to terms with the status of the party and the status of those who are the faces of the party for the public,” he said.
Drawing comparisons with political practice in the United States, Dr. Arthur argued that parties often sideline leaders who have lost public confidence after electoral defeat.
“For example, if you go to the United States, after 1932 when Herbert Hoover lost to Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Republicans sent Hoover into the back room. Nobody would put him on a conference for him to talk on behalf of the party,” he said.
He added, “In 1980, Jimmy Carter lost, and the Democrats never invited him to a public congress. Why? Because he had become toxic. The public didn’t want to hear from him.”
According to Dr. Kennedy, a similar situation now applies to former President Akufo-Addo.
“Nana Addo has become a public liability, so the idea that when you have a public function you go and take Nana Addo and let him talk means you’re not reading the room right,” he said.
Dr. Kennedy also criticised the continued prominence of some senior party figures, and described former Interior Minister Hackman Owusu Agyeman as “yesterday’s man.”
“I say that not because of their ages. I say that because of their relationship with the public and their ideologies. Kufuor is older, but Kufuor is still a relevant face of the party. People like and respect him. They think he was a good leader,” he explained.
He stressed that political relevance is determined by public perception, not seniority.
“It’s about what the public perceives about you and whether what you say resonates with them,” he added.
Dr. Kennedy further argued that the New Patriotic Party’s defeat in the 2024 general elections had more to do with the outgoing president than with the party’s flagbearer.
He said the loss suffered by Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was “more about Nana Addo than Bawumia,” insisting that the party must confront that reality if it hopes to rebuild.
