Akomea: I never made any attempt to persuade Bamaba relinquish his position

Third Vice Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akomea, has dismissed reports that he and Second Vice Chairman, Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B, sought to persuade the party’s First Vice Chairman, Kojo Fosu Boadu, alias Kojo Bamba, to relinquish his position in an arrangement that would have altered the outcome of the party’s vice-chairmanship election.

The reports gained traction after Nana Akomea and Nana B were conspicuously absent when the newly elected national executives were introduced and sworn into office at the NPP’s National Delegates Conference in Kumasi.

However, Nana Akomea, speaking on Joy News, described claims that he had negotiated with Kojo Bamba over the positions as “total falsehood”, insisting that there was no basis for such an arrangement.

According to him, he knew from the results that he had placed third and was making efforts to return to the venue for the swearing-in when he was caught in traffic. Nana Akomea explained that he had left the Baba Yara Sports Stadium at about 11:30 p.m. and was returning when he became stuck in traffic, arriving only after the introductions had been completed.

He also argued that he could not have negotiated with Kojo Bamba over the election outcome because he was not at the venue when the votes were counted and tabulated. “So I was not present during the vote counting and tabulation, and so could not have engaged myself in any ‘negotiation’ with Kojo Bamba or anybody else,” Nana Akomea said in a subsequent clarification.

The controversy followed an election in which Kojo Bamba emerged as the leading candidate among 13 contenders for the three vice-chairmanship positions. Bamba polled 3,116 votes to take the first position, followed by Nana B with 3,061 votes and Nana Akomea with 2,987 votes. Former Information Minister, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid narrowly missed the top three with 2,956 votes.

The three highest vote-getters consequently became the First, Second and Third Vice Chairmen respectively.

It was against this background that speculation emerged that the ranking might have been subject to an informal post-election arrangement, with claims that Bamba was being encouraged to accept the Third Vice Chairmanship while Nana Akomea and Nana B moved into the first and second positions.

Nana Akomea, however, has rejected that narrative. Instead, he has offered an explanation for how Kojo Bamba managed to top what was widely regarded as a highly competitive contest involving several experienced NPP figures.

According to Nana Akomea, Bamba adopted a different campaign strategy from most of the other contenders.

While candidates such as himself, Nana B, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid and Richard Ahiagbah largely campaigned on their experience and previous contributions to the party, Bamba reportedly presented himself as an additional choice to delegates.

Nana Akomea said Bamba would tell delegates that wherever he went during the campaign, they mentioned Nana Akomea’s name, and therefore encouraged them to remember him as an additional candidate in their voting.

That strategy, Nana Akomea suggested, enabled Bamba’s name to feature repeatedly in different combinations of candidates chosen by delegates. “Bamba’s message was clever. Very clever,” Nana Akomea said, explaining that the strategy was different from the approach adopted by many of his rivals.

The election system itself also played a significant role. Rather than delegates voting separately for First, Second and Third Vice Chairman, the 13 aspirants contested the three positions collectively. The three candidates who obtained the highest number of votes were subsequently ranked first, second and third.

That arrangement meant Bamba did not need to persuade delegates to make him their preferred candidate specifically for the First Vice Chairmanship. His strategy was to ensure that his name appeared among the three choices made by as many delegates as possible.

The eventual results showed the effectiveness of that approach, with Bamba finishing 55 votes ahead of Nana B and 129 votes ahead of Nana Akomea.

Nana B has also dismissed suggestions that his absence from the post-election swearing-in was deliberate. He explained that after remaining on his feet throughout the election, he left the stadium briefly to freshen up, unaware that the Electoral Commission would complete the declaration and swearing-in process so quickly. By the time he returned, the ceremony had ended.

The explanations from the two vice chairmen have, therefore, sought to draw a line under speculation that their absence was connected to dissatisfaction with the election results or a failed arrangement involving Kojo Bamba.

Indeed, Nana Akomea has indicated that the issue of the outstanding oath is expected to be resolved at the first meeting of the newly elected national executives. “I am sure I will get myself sworn in,” he told JoyNews.

The development comes as the NPP begins a new four-year leadership cycle under National Chairman John Boadu and General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua, with the party expected to focus on internal reorganisation and preparations for the 2028 general elections.

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