A growing rebellion is brewing within the grassroots of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) as angry supporters pile pressure on President John Dramani Mahama to immediately sack Ransford Randy Abbey as CEO of the Ghana Cocoa Board.
What began as murmurs of dissatisfaction has now exploded into open fury, with party activists warning that Abbey’s continued stay in office could destroy the NDC’s political future.
“Incompetence at the Highest Level”
Hardline supporters are accusing the COCOBOD boss of gross incompetence, arguing that he lacks both the technical know-how and industry experience required to manage Ghana’s most strategic cash crop.
According to internal critics, Abbey is “out of his depth” in global cocoa trading and marketing — a fatal weakness in an industry driven by complex international pricing mechanisms.
Party insiders say placing a non-technocrat at the helm of COCOBOD was a costly political gamble that is now backfiring.
Cocoa Price Cut Ignites Political Firestorm
The anger has been inflamed by the controversial reduction in cocoa prices — a move that has devastated farmer morale across cocoa-growing regions.
Grassroots voices describe the decision to slash producer prices as “economic betrayal,” warning that history could record Abbey as the most unpopular COCOBOD CEO ever to preside over a price reduction in Ghana.
In cocoa belts, frustration is reportedly boiling over, with farmers accusing government actors of abandoning the backbone of the rural economy.
2028 Election Fears Intensify
Prominent grassroots figures like Listowel Nana Poku are sounding the alarm, warning that the fallout could be politically catastrophic.
According to them, the COCOBOD mess is already eroding goodwill painstakingly built by the NDC over the years. If not addressed swiftly, they fear the backlash could hand ammunition to opponents and cripple the party’s chances in the 2028 elections.
Some activists are blunt: the cocoa crisis, they say, could become the NDC’s single biggest electoral liability.
“Act Now or Pay the Price”
The message from the base is increasingly uncompromising — act now or risk political disaster.
Aggrieved supporters insist that President Mahama must demonstrate decisive leadership by removing Abbey and resetting COCOBOD’s direction. Anything short of that, they warn, will be seen as indifference to farmer suffering and political complacency.
But within government circles, there are whispers that global market pressures — not individual failings — may have influenced pricing decisions, a defence that has done little to calm the anger.
A Party at a Crossroads
With tensions escalating and grassroots patience wearing thin, the controversy is fast becoming more than a policy dispute — it is turning into a defining political test.
Whether President Mahama stands by Randy Abbey or bows to mounting internal pressure could shape not just COCOBOD’s future, but the electoral trajectory of the NDC itself.
NDC Base Erupts: Pressure Mounts on Mahama to Sack Randy Abbey Over COCOBOD Crisis
