Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamale, a long time founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has revealed that the current crop of leadership steering the affairs of the party is trailing on a dangerous path, cautioning that the abandonment of internal democracy could tear the party apart.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, which was closely followed by Today.com.gh, the veteran politician said the NPP has failed to properly interrogate its recent electoral loss, instead bypassing its grassroots base and concentrating power at the top.
According to him, the party’s refusal to return to its foundational structures after the defeat has created deep disaffection among supporters and weakened internal cohesion.
“If we truly want to win back the soul of the party, then we must do things democratically,” Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe said, stressing that the party’s traditional bottom-up approach has been ignored.
He argued that rebuilding after a major defeat is not optional but a political necessity, insisting that leadership must engage ordinary party members and allow them to speak frankly about what went wrong.
“A party that has been badly damaged in a general election cannot continue as if nothing happened,” he said. “You must go back to the grassroots and listen to them.”
Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe warned that the growing culture of imposed decisions and closed-door arrangements risks destroying the very principles on which the NPP was founded.
“I won’t say the party is doomed, but the leadership at the moment is leading the party into destruction,” he stated.
He further criticised what he described as the rise of “monocracy” within the party, saying the concentration of power in a few hands has eroded fairness and accountability.
“There are no internal democracy and no fair play. This is very dangerous,” he warned.
The NPP elder also raised concerns about the monetisation of internal elections and the imposition of candidates, practices he said fuel factionalism and undermine public confidence in the party.
“These are the very things that destroy political parties,” he said.
Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe cautioned that the deepening factional lines within the party could haunt the NPP long after its internal elections, making unity difficult regardless of who emerges victorious.
“There are clearly factions in the party, and whoever wins will struggle to bring the party together,” he noted.
He urged party delegates, aspirants and executives to reflect on the party’s history and values, warning that ignoring past lessons could have lasting consequences.
“We have been here before,” he said. “If they do not know the history of the party, they should study it. We must be careful.”
