New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Chairman hopeful, Awentami Paul Afoko, has begun the second phase of a series of high-level consultative meetings with key figures in the party, including former Vice President and the party’s 2024 flagbearer, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former President John Agyekum Kufuor and former Assin Central Member of Parliament, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong.

Before the January 31, 2026, presidential primaries, Afoko met with all five aspirants, including Dr Bryan Acheampong, Ing Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, and Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, in a move aimed at fostering unity within the party.

Sources close to Afoko described the meetings as courtesy calls and stakeholder consultations forming part of his nationwide engagements ahead of the NPP’s upcoming National Delegates Conference.

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Afoko, who served as NPP National Chairman from 2014 to 2015, is promoting his “3R Agenda” Reunite, Rebuild and Recapture as the blueprint to return the party to power in 2028.

His team says the visits are intended to tap into the collective experience of party stalwarts, listen to concerns, and build consensus on the state of the party following its 2024 electoral defeat.

“You cannot rebuild a house by ignoring the architects,” a member of Afoko’s team told reporters.

“He’s meeting the people who have led this party at the highest level. Their wisdom matters.”

The meetings with Dr Bawumia and former President Akufo-Addo are seen as significant, given their influence over the direction of the party.

The visit to former President Kufuor, the NPP’s first President under the Fourth Republic, also underscores Afoko’s pitch for institutional memory and party unity.

His engagement with leading figures within the party is being viewed as an attempt to bridge internal factions and strengthen cohesion ahead of the 2028 general elections.

While details of the discussions remain private, sources indicate that Mr. Afoko stressed the need to “put all hands on deck” and avoid internal blame games.

He is also said to have reiterated his call for the party to prioritize “competence over ethnicity” in choosing its next National Chairman.

The consultative tour follows similar meetings with the Ashanti Regional Council of Elders and the Ashanti Regional Executives in Kumasi weeks ago.

Afoko, who has formally declared his intention to contest the National Chairman position, is currently embarking on a nationwide outreach campaign to engage party kingmakers and grassroots members.

Party insiders say the meetings suggest he is “testing the waters and mending fences” as he positions himself ahead of the internal contest.