Former Upper West Regional Minister Dr Hafiz Bin Salih has challenged delegates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to look beyond personal relationships and elect a national executive team capable of rebuilding the party ahead of the 2028 general election.

With the NPP set to elect its national executives on October 3, 2026, Dr Bin Salih said the central consideration should be whether aspirants have the vision, competence and organisational discipline to turn the party around after its 2024 electoral setback.

He argued that the exercise should not be reduced to a contest for positions but should produce an executive team capable of restoring the party’s organisational strength and helping its 2028 presidential candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, mount an effective campaign.

“I approach exercises of this nature with deep conviction, objectivity, and a firm resolve not to let emotions or personal sentiments influence my judgment,” Dr Bin Salih said in a statement.

“This election is not about rewarding personal familiarity; it is about building a battle-ready executive team capable of delivering results.”

The former minister’s intervention comes as 47 candidates prepare to contest nine national executive positions in Kumasi.

The chairmanship race features former General Secretary John Boadu, former National Chairman Paul Afoko, former Energy Minister Boakye Agyarko and former Greater Accra Regional Chairman Sammy Crabbe.

The election follows the NPP’s 2024 general election defeat, in which Dr Bawumia lost the presidential election to John Mahama, while the party also lost its parliamentary majority. The NPP secured 88 seats in the 276-member Parliament, compared with 183 for the NDC, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s record of the election.

It is against that backdrop that Dr Bin Salih has called for a “battle-ready” executive team.

He said the party needs people who will actively work towards its stated electoral objective rather than merely occupy national positions.

“Most importantly, we need an executive machinery best equipped to secure victory for H.E. Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in the 2028 presidential election while ensuring the NPP re-establishes a decisive majority in Parliament,” he said.

A clear line in the chairmanship contest

Dr Bin Salih has already made his preference in the chairmanship race public.

In June, he endorsed Boakye Agyarko, arguing that the former Energy Minister possessed the experience and leadership qualities he believed the NPP needed at the time.

He has since maintained that position even after the chairmanship field was reduced to four candidates following the withdrawal of Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi.

Agyarko is number four on the ballot, behind Boadu, Sammy Crabbe and Afoko.

Dr Bin Salih has also thrown his support behind former National Petroleum Authority Chief Executive Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid for the First National Vice Chairman position. He has also backed Alhaji Dr Issahaku Tahiru Moomin, a former Wa Municipal Chief Executive, for the position of National Treasurer.

In a separate statement following Abdul-Hamid’s filing, he described him as embodying the qualities of a “Scholar, Statesman and Servant” and expressed confidence in his leadership and capacity.

Abdul-Hamid is among 13 candidates contesting the Vice-Chairperson position. He is number two on the ballot.

But Dr Bin Salih’s latest intervention goes beyond the two individuals he has openly supported.

His broader message is that delegates should view the national elections through the lens of the party’s organisational needs rather than individual loyalties.

The former regional minister said leadership positions are limited and, therefore, delegates must make “difficult yet necessary choices” despite their confidence in the abilities of several aspirants.

That framing puts the focus on what the eventual executive team will be expected to do once the internal contest ends.

For the NPP, the challenge is no longer simply choosing national officers. The party is seeking to reorganise its political machinery after the 2024 election and prepare for the 2028 presidential and parliamentary contests.

Dr Bin Salih’s prescription is therefore straightforward: elect people who can organise, rebuild and deliver.

“Let all of us who genuinely love the NPP and believe in the leadership of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia remember our ultimate objective,” he said.

“We need leaders who will actively work to secure victory, not individuals who merely wish to occupy space.”