At the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) annual national conference on Saturday at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the party’s presidential candidate for the 2024 general election and former vice president of Ghana, was greeted with a resounding round of applause.
Dr. Bawumia’s arrival at the location clearly energized the crowd, as thousands of party delegates, enthusiastic party members, and supporters burst into applause, chants, and the waving of party colors.
As the party’s 2024 presidential candidate was led into the stadium, the wildly enthusiastic NPP supporters yelled in chorus, “still maintain,” “no change,” and “Bawumia is our man for 2028.”
Dr. Bawumia’s arrival momentarily stopped the conference’s proceedings as the party faithful got up to applaud and sing patriotic songs, creating an electrifying scene at the conference site.
The former vice president, wearing NPP colors and surrounded by important party officials, smiled and waved in appreciation of the overwhelming turnout, while regional delegations and party youth groups vied to be the most enthusiastic.
When Henry Nana Boakye, the NPP National Organiser, introduced Dr. Bawumia to deliver a brief speech to party delegates, similar exuberance was shown.
Reaffirming unity was made possible by the 2025 conference, which brought together the party’s rank and file.
Among the many significant decisions made at the conference were certain changes to the party’s constitution.
54 of the 56 proposed amendments would allow former MPs, former Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), former ministers of state, and former constituency, regional, and national officers to vote in the electoral college to select the party’s presidential candidate and all of its executives.
When Dr. Bawumia addressed party stakeholders at all levels with a message of solidarity, it evoked strong feelings.
He told the delegates that he had “mixed feelings” and wished he was speaking to them “under different circumstances.”
“It is with mixed feelings that I welcome you all to this national delegates’ conference.”
”It is a joy to see the representation of our party from across the country converge once again for the conference. I, however, would have wished that we would have been doing this under different circumstances,” Dr. Bawumia stated.
The former vice president’s conflicted emotions were evidently a reflection of the NPP’s devastating loss in the 2024 elections, but he also conveyed a great deal of hope for the future.
He urged party members to support the party’s reconstruction effort with solidarity at all levels and eagerly await another chance to serve the country.
“Yet still I am filled with hope that as we reflect and reorganise, we will soon be given the opportunity once again by our countrymen and women to serve and assist in rebuilding and transforming our nation.
“The task ahead of us is one that we have to conduct with diligence and measure. In times like this, we should be focused on strengthening our bonds of unity and reinvesting in the ties that bind us. Our foundation and our strength have always been in building a united party,” Dr. Bawumia reiterated.
As the NPP restructures the party for the future, former Vice President Bawumia stated that it is crucial for Ghanaians to truly see the lessons the party has learned.
He asserts that the true goal of the party’s restructuring is to improve its ability to effectively administer the people, not just to win elections.
“We must be consistent in pursuance of our effort to address not just the challenges within but more importantly the challenges that bedevil our motherland.”
“We have also learned useful lessons in how to improve some things in the future. We must remain resolute and consistent in doing the right things again and in applying the lessons the next time.”
“We must ensure that Ghanaians genuinely see the lessons we have learnt and are willing to apply them next time round. We shouldn’t be shy about them. It is then that our fellow countrymen and women will give us another opportunity to serve,” he added.
Source: newsthemegh.com