Former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has strongly refuted claims that he is responsible for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) poor performance in the Bawku enclave during the 2024 general elections.
The NPP failed to secure a single seat in the six constituencies that make up the enclave — Zebilla, Garu, Bawku Central, Binduri, Tempane, and Pusiga.
Addressing party supporters at Effiduase in the Ashanti Region on Thursday, September 11, as part of his campaign for the 2026 NPP presidential primaries, Dr Bawumia dismissed suggestions that the long-standing Mamprusi-Kusasi conflict played a role in the outcome.
“They claim we lost the 2024 elections because of the Mamprusi-Kusasi conflict. Those claims will not wash. They would have given me a knockout if it were true because I’m a Mamprusi. I was not even born when the conflict started,” he said.
Dr Bawumia argued that the NPP’s struggles in the area are rooted in history rather than present-day circumstances.
“Since 1965, there have been 11 elections in Ghana, in the Bawku zone, which has six constituencies. The NPP has won only two seats, being the highest. In most of the elections, we had zero seats in six of the 11 elections,” he explained.
He pointed out that even during election years when the NPP recorded national victories, the trend in Bawku remained unchanged.
“In 2004, former president J. A. Kufuor won the election, but the NPP scored zero in the Bawku zone. In 2012, former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was the flagbearer, but we had zero seats in the Bawku zone. We were not part of the conflict. In 2024, we had zero seats in the Bawku enclave. If you look at the trajectory, was I the cause? I can’t be blamed for our poor performance in the Bawku zone, which is an NDC stronghold,” he emphasised.
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