Former Vice-President and 2028 New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer Mahamudu Bawumia has pledged to present practical and costed policy proposals ahead of the 2028 general election, saying the party has learnt lessons from its defeat in 2024.
Speaking at a thanksgiving service in Sunyani, the Bono Region capital, on Sunday, 18 October, Bawumia said the NPP would focus on workable solutions as it seeks to regain power.
Promises made to win power must be kept because time tests every promise
“The NDC made a lot of promises, now they are vulnerable and exposed. So in 2028 we are going with ideas, costed ideas, workable ideas and practical ideas,” he said.
Bawumia said the NPP had conducted a post-election review of its 2024 defeat and completed a reorganisation of its structures, from polling station executives to national officers.
He said the party was now stronger than it was during the last election and expressed confidence in its preparations for the 2028 polls.
“We lost in 2024 and I conceded defeat in the interest of peace. We did a postmortem of our defeat, reorganised and by the grace of God I am the flagbearer for the 2028 elections and when I win we will correct all the mistakes,” he said.
Bawumia also expressed confidence in the NPP’s prospects in the Bono Region, saying the party’s regional chairman, Kwame Baffoe, popularly known as Abronye, had assured him that it would win all parliamentary seats in the region.
Economic concerns
The former vice-president criticised the economic management of President John Dramani Mahama’s administration, arguing that improvements in economic indicators had not translated into meaningful relief for ordinary Ghanaians.
The government has pointed to easing inflation and relative stability in the foreign exchange market as signs of economic recovery.
But Bawumia said such indicators were insufficient if households continued to struggle with the cost of living.
“You cannot have a stable economy with people suffering. Stability is not an end in itself,” he said.
He questioned whether cocoa farmers had experienced tangible benefits from the reported economic improvements and accused the government of failing to deliver on its promises concerning the 24-hour economy initiative and the Agenda 111 hospital programme.
“Almost two years they don’t understand how they can explain the 24-hour economy. It does not exist. They promised to build Agenda 111 but it has not happened,” he said.
Bawumia described Ghana’s economic situation as comprising two realities: a statistical economy reflected in official figures and a “pocket economy” that determines the financial circumstances of ordinary citizens.
“If you say you have stability and it does not reflect in our pocket then it is meaningless,” he said.
He also alleged that people who criticised the government faced arrest, although he did not cite specific cases in his remarks.
*Call for accountability*
Bawumia said the NDC’s campaign promises had exposed the governing party to criticism and argued that political parties must fulfil commitments made to voters.
“Promises made to win power must be kept because time tests every promise,” he said.
The NPP flagbearer called for national unity across ethnic and religious lines, urging political leaders to prioritise the welfare of citizens.
“We pray for a government that will work hard to benefit Ghanaians. We need unity across all ethnic lines, religious lines and tribal lines. Together we can serve our country,” he said.
Bawumia served as vice-president under former president Nana Akufo-Addo from 2017 to 2025.
He lost the December 2024 presidential election to Mahama, who returned to office after previously serving as president from 2012 to 2017.
