The five presidential candidates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have signed a peace pact vowing to a peaceful, transparent, and credible internal election ahead of the party’s presidential primary on January 31, 2026.
The deal was signed at a ceremony on Thursday, January 22, 2026, at the Alisa Hotel in Accra, with all five hopefuls signing to indicate their approval of the contest’s regulations and their commitment to maintaining unity before, during, and after the elections.
Speaking at the event, former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo emphasised that the party’s survival and future electoral success hinged on unity and urged the candidates and party loyalists to prioritise the NPP’s collective interest over personal ambition.
He emphasised to the attendees that the NPP was larger than any one individual or group.
In order to maintain party unity, Joseph Osei Owusu, the chairman of the NPP Elections Committee, also urged the candidates to accept the results of the election on January 31 and support the eventual victor.
He claimed that in order to prevent undermining internal cohesiveness, disagreements should be resolved inside the party’s established mechanisms.
The signature of the agreement, according to NPP General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua, is evidence of the party’s dedication to peaceful competition and internal democracy.
“The peace pact ensures that all candidates actively participate at every stage and accept the results of the January 31 primaries. It also commits all aspirants to maintain party cohesion and support the winner in the 2028 general elections,” he stated.
The agreement stated that all candidates were given equal opportunity and that the primary process was carried out in a transparent, inclusive, and fair way.
They pledged to abstain from any acts or words that would jeopardise party unity and to recognise the election’s results as a legitimate and binding representation of the party delegates’ will.
In addition, the agreement pledges the candidates to foster harmony within the party prior to, during, and following the primaries and to fully support the selected flagbearer in both the 2028 general election and the NPP’s attempts to win a sizable legislative majority.
In accordance with the party’s constitution, any disagreements resulting from violations of the agreement must be settled through internal dispute resolution procedures.
Former Vice-President and 2024 presidential candidate Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is one of the candidates, along with former Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong, Abetifi MP and former Minister of Food and Agriculture Dr Bryan Acheampong, Bosomtwe MP and former Minister of Education Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, and former NPP General Secretary Ing. Kwabena Agyei Agyepong.
Mr Agyei Agyepong is seeking the NPP flagbearership for the third time, having previously run in 2007 and 2023.
Mr. Agyapong is making his second effort after finishing second to Dr. Bawumia in the 2023 primary.
Dr. Bawumia is running for a second mandate after winning the 2023 campaign, while Drs. Acheampong and Adutwum are both running for flagbearership for the first time.
Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, Chairman of the NPP Council of Elders Hackman Owusu Agyemang, Inspector-General of Police Christian Tetteh Yohuno, former Chief Justice Akosua Frema Osei Opare, and other prominent party figures were among the state officials and party leaders present at the event.
Source: newsthemegh.com