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A former Afigya Kwabre South Constituency Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Odeneho Kwaku Appiah, has stressed the need for members of the party to rally behind the rebuilding efforts to position it to win the 2028 elections.
He said he agreed with the view that internal divisions accounted for the party's shrinking vote margins.
“We were all disappointed at the 2024 election, but we need to quickly regroup, reflect and build our great party together as stated in the theme of our conference,” he said.
Odeneho Appiah said this during the NPP annual delegates conference in response to calls among the Ashanti Region delegates for him to contest for the chairmanship of the party.
At the last Ashanti Regional Delegates Conference on May 28, 2022, the incumbent chairman, Benard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, sailed through with 464 votes, while his close contender, Odeneho Kwaku Appiah, popularly known as COKA, garnered 306 votes.
Odeneho Appiah told delegates, who welcomed him with massive applause, that the party was rebuilding, hence the need for all party members to support the process.
“I am happy to see party people showing commitment to the rebuilding process.
The enthusiasm at this year’s conference is great. I urge party people to keep faith with the party, continue to stay disciplined, and with God on our side, the NPP will bounce back,” he stated.
“l have served the party from the grassroots, the polling station, the constituency to the region.
So, at the right time when given a leadership position, l will work to bring together generational divides and mend broken relationships for a united party,” Odeneho Appiah said.
Odeneho Appiah, who enjoys support from notable party leaders and the grassroots in the Ashanti Region, said he saw his leadership as crucial to repairing strained relationships between the regional office and local party structures.
The date for NPP regional elections has not been announced yet, but Odeneho Appiah is seen as a central figure in the NPP's path to power in 2028.
The former Ashanti Regional chairman aspirant, who promised to continue providing ways to reinvigorate the party, stated that when given a leadership role in the region, he would bring a new direction to the party.
Odeneho Appiah, who many of the delegates also see as a unifier and consensus candidate, attributed his experience emanated from long service to the party, temperament and unifying appeal.
As the “political world bank” of the NPP, Odeneho Appiah promised to work hard to regain all the lost seats in 2028 and increase the vote margins.
The NPP Constituency Chairman for Obuasi West, Samuel Dan Yankey, said the party in the region needed someone like Odeneho Appiah to steer the affairs of the party.
“He is a unifier and with his experience and over three decades of service to the NPP, he brings deep institutional knowledge and business expertise to the table,” he said.
“His dual identity as a seasoned politician and successful businessman makes him an attractive candidate to lead the region as chairman for the party,” Mr Yankey said.
He said with Odeneho Appiah at the helm, the NPP might see increased support and votes in the Ashanti region, potentially impacting the party's overall electoral prospects.
