Breakaway In The NPP; Alan Cash Fingered

The editor of the Daily Dispatch newspaper is calling on defeated flagbearer aspirant, Allan Kyeremanteng to disassociate himself from reports that there is a breakaway of the New Patriotic Party. Ben Ephson had published in Tuesday 31 August Edition of the paper that there are credible indications that a new political party, the United Front Party is being formed.

That a new political party is being formed according to Mr Ephson is no news. He says what is worrying is that the party is targeting supporters of Allan Kyeremanteng.

He however could not tell whether Mr Kyeremanten was behind the breakaway, hence his call on him to come clear.

Mr Ephson in an interview with Emefa Apawu of XFM 95.1, an Accra based radio station also said the new party, which has been operating albeit secretly for the past three months has its heartbeat in Kumasi, the NPP’s political World Bank.

This would not be the first time that there is going to be a breakaway in the NPP. Mr Kyeremanteng himself decided to walk away after he lost the bid to lead the NPP prior to the 2008 general elections citing intimidations of his supporters. The Reformed Patriotic Party is also a breakaway of the NPP. It was formed by a onetime party member in the Manhyia constituency, Kwabena Adjei. Mr Adjei once contested the party’s regional organizer position in the Ashanti region but lost.

He had said then that several people have decided to break away from the NPP because they unhappy with the party executives had conducted the affairs of the party. Very little is heard of the RPP today.

Mr Ben Ephson will however not say the person or persons behind the formation of the new party saying “if you mention names, they will come out and deny”. He however said like the Reformed Patriotic Party, the United Front Party will not stand the test of time.

The NPP had traced its tradition to the United Party (UP) after the Passage of the Avoidance of Discrimination Act (ADA) was passed in December 1957 under the Convention People Party (CPP). This Act banned all political parties that were formed along regional, ethnic and religious lines. Based on the Act all the opposition parties came together to form the UP under the leadership of Dr Kofi Abrefa Busia and the deputy Chief Simon Diedong Dombo.

Some members of the NPP think its tradition goes beyond the UP, back to the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) in 1947 a period before Ghana gained her independence. This period Dr J. B. Danquah's role and influence cannot be forgotten.

Danquah's contested with Dr Nkrumah in order to become the first President of Ghana. Also, Danquah's political influence in the 1940s up to the 1960s when he died, he indeed remains a hero for the NPP and a great politician in the history of Ghana.

Dr K. A. Busia leader of the UP and the Prime minister of the Progress Party (PP) in 1969 has been credited as second force after Dr J. B. Danquah as far as NPP tradition is concern. This Danquah-Busia tradition contested the 1979 general elections under the leadership of Victor Owusu but lost to Dr Hilla Liman. Victor Owusu was not added to the Danquah-Busia Tradition. The question one might ask is why was he not added? Could it be that because he lost the elections or what? May be because he was not a leader in the formation of the UP the 'root' of the NPP tradition.

In the 1992 general elections, the Danquah-Busia tradition of the NPP was led by Prof Albert Adu Boahen and in 1996 John Agyekum Kufour led the party till he was elected in 2000.

Ghanaians can remember that not too long ago, The National Reform Party, a political party was founded in 1999 by a splinter group from the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The party contested the 2000 presidential and parliamentary elections on the 7 December 2000 but won no seats.

Its presidential candidate Augustus Obuadum Tanoh ("Goosie" Tanoh) had 1.1% of the presidential vote.Goosie's running mate was Fetus Kosiba.

Robert Israel/ Abena Asiedua Tenkorang, Xfm 95.1, Accra, Ghana Research notes from Daniel Kipo, Political Science Student, University of Bergen, Norway.