It’s sensible to give Bawumia another chance – Atta Akyea on NPP primaries

Former Abuakwa South MP and senior member of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s campaign team, Samuel Atta Akyea, has argued that the former Vice President deserves another opportunity to lead the New Patriotic Party (NPP) into a general election.

Speaking on JoyNews’ AM Show on Friday, January 9, 2026, Mr Atta Akyea said the NPP has a clear tradition of standing by candidates who initially lost national elections but later went on to win power.

He recalled that the party did not discard former President John Agyekum Kufuor after his first attempt, nor did it abandon former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who contested multiple times before eventually winning.

According to him, the same reasoning should apply to Dr Bawumia as the party heads into its presidential primaries scheduled for January 31, 2026.

Mr Atta Akyea further contended that Dr Bawumia has a distinct advantage over other aspirants due to his national exposure and prior testing in a general election.

He argued that while other contenders may be capable, they would effectively be starting from scratch in a nationwide contest, particularly against a governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) that would also be grappling with its own internal succession dynamics.

He noted that Dr Bawumia, having already been marketed to the electorate, secured 41.7 per cent in his first attempt, making it more realistic to build on that performance to cross the 50 per cent plus one threshold than to introduce a new, lesser-known candidate.

Mr Atta Akyea also dismissed claims that the former Vice President’s previous defeat undermines his credibility, insisting that despite intense public scrutiny, Dr Bawumia has maintained a clean record.

He described Dr Bawumia as the NPP’s strongest option in terms of integrity and comparative advantage, stressing that his character remains untarnished by corruption allegations.