A member of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) legal team, Ishaq Ibrahim, has attributed the party’s defeat in the 2024 general elections to weak collective strategy and ineffective messaging, rather than any lack of competence on the part of its flagbearer, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.
Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on December 18, 2025, Ishaq said the NPP failed to adequately market Dr Bawumia to the electorate, despite his credentials and experience in government.
According to him, the party’s loss was the result of internal shortcomings, campaign missteps and errors committed while in office, and not the performance or capacity of its presidential candidate.
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“We lost the 2024 Election not because of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. We lost because of our collective failure to market him very well, the mistakes we made while in government, and how we framed our campaign,” he stated.
Ishaq described Dr Bawumia as competent by all standards and urged party members and delegates to rally behind him ahead of the 2028 Election, which he said represents the NPP’s strongest opportunity to return to power.
He also criticised the party’s ‘breaking the eight’ campaign slogan, arguing that it placed an unfair burden on the candidate, as no political party in Ghana’s Fourth Republic has won three consecutive terms.
“We were asking him to achieve something historic that no one has done before. To then conclude that because that standard was not met, he is not worth trying again is unfair,” he said.
Turning his attention to the John Dramani Mahama-led administration, Ishaq claimed that many Ghanaians were already dissatisfied with its performance, particularly in relation to rising tariffs and the cost of living.
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He noted that voters often value consistency, citing President Mahama’s political comeback after previous electoral defeats as an example.
“Ghanaians believe in consistency. That is why, despite earlier rejections, Mahama has won again,” he added.
Ishaq appealed to NPP members to remain united, avoid internal distractions, and draw lessons from past mistakes as the party prepares for the next election cycle.
MRA/AE
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