A former Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Obiri Boahen, has waded into a request by the Ntim family for the National Chairman of the NPP to temporarily step down from all party responsibilities due to health concerns and the urgent need for rest and medical care.

Speaking exclusively to GhanaWeb on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, Obiri Boahen shared the view that Ntim should have written a letter to permanently step down from his role so that another person could assume it, rather than taking a temporary break from his duties.

He said that such bold decisions can only be taken by individuals who are principled, making reference to himself and stating that it is the right thing to do.

“Any principled politician like myself, Obiri Boahen, if I’m not well, I would have put in my resignation letter. If he's not well and he thinks that it will affect his activities, even if I'm the president, I will resign. So, if you're a national chairman of the party and you are not well, why do you call for a temporary break?’ he quizzed.

He continued, “That is also absurd. Why should he not then resign? What kind of life are you going through? If you are a national chairman and your health situation doesn't permit you to continue, why don't you resign? We should stop this type of exposing ourselves to public ridicule and contempt.”

Obiri Boahen, also a legal practitioner, heavily criticised the approach taken by the family of Stephen Ntim, questioning why the family, rather than Ntim himself, would write a letter making such a decision on his behalf when, as protocol demands, he should have written the letter himself and handed it to the party.

He described the development as "abnormal, unthinkable, and unheard of," asserting that the family may be seeking relevance.

“It is abnormal, quite unheard of, and unthinkable. How can a family write a letter for a mature adult? Somebody wants to be relevant. The man is not suffering from insanity because when you talk of insanity, it affects the mind, but if the man is not suffering from insanity, he can pick up a piece of paper and a pen and write something down. So, what is all this fuss about?” he said.

He further described the entire situation as misbehavior on the part of the family, questioning their decision to make such requests from the party, adding that the party elected the individual, not the family.

“People should stop misbehaving. I call it misbehaving. He himself should write the letter. When you talk about the family doing this and that, did the party vote for the family? No. In any case, in recent times, if you look at the laws of this country, it is the children and the wife. In these days, it is the children and the wife system, not the brother or sister. That is unwarranted.”

MAG/MA

You can also watch the latest Twi news on GhanaWeb TV below: