Aspiring National Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Salam Mustapha, has defended the party’s jobs plan under the previous government, arguing that it was more credible than the employment promises made by the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
According to him, the NPP had several programmes in the pipeline that could have created jobs for young people if given more time to implement them.
Mr Mustapha made the remarks at Channel one TV on Tuesday September 1, 2026 where he highlighted the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 general election and the concerns of young people over unemployment.
He likened the situation facing the NPP before the election to the Titanic, explaining that although he warned the party about the challenges ahead, the problem was not that the leadership ignored his concerns but rather a lack of capacity to address them quickly.
He pointed to the pressure on government finances, noting that about 60 to 70 per cent of the country’s revenue goes into the payment of public sector workers.
Mr Mustapha explained that the NPP’s plans required time to create sustainable employment opportunities rather than providing jobs for all young people overnight.
He cited the Agenda 111 hospital project as one of the programmes that could have created employment, particularly for health workers.
According to him, the completion of the project would have required about 70,000 health workers.
He acknowledged, however, that young people who were unemployed and struggling could not simply wait for two or three years for jobs to be created.
Mr Mustapha criticised the NDC government’s employment initiatives, claiming that some of its campaign promises to the youth have not been fulfilled.
He cited the promise to create 100,000 jobs, arguing that the government had created fewer than 10,000 so far and had also failed to sustain some of the programmes.
He questioned the progress of the government’s “One Million Coders” initiative and the automatic employment promise for nurses.
Mr Mustapha further argued that the government’s entrepreneurship initiatives were similar to programmes introduced under the NPP.
He cited the “Adwumawura” programme, which he linked to former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s administration, as an example of efforts to support young entrepreneurs.
Despite the NPP’s defeat among young voters, Mr Mustapha expressed confidence that many young people who previously voted against the party may have changed their minds.
He pointed to discussions on social media as an indication of growing dissatisfaction among some young people with the NDC government.
Mr Mustapha maintained that the NPP could regain the confidence of the youth if it addresses their concerns and presents practical solutions to unemployment.
By: Jacob Aggrey
