The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has expressed concern about the way and manner some members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have so far been treated by the John Mahama-led government.
The Effutu constituency Member of Parliament (MP) observes that, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), after forming government, has had a field day, arresting leading members of the opposition party and former government officials, basically because there is palpable disunity in the NPP.
He complains that the government has capitalized on the seeming in cohesion to treat these members any how it likes because the largest opposition group, is not interested in mobilizing and defending their own they are all minding their businesses.
Speaking in a recent interview on Adom FM, Afenyo-Markin decried the situation citing the clear cases of the Ashanti Regional chairman of the NPP, Bernard Antwi Boasiako alias Wontumi and former boss of the National Signals Bureau (NSB) Kwabena Adu Boahene.
The two as well as others, are facing prosecutions for different reasons including mining illegally in forest reserves, money laundering, and diversion of funds into private account among others.
He argued that if they were united, the government could not have behaved in this manner. He said the government has taken advantage of the situation to perpetuate their agenda.
He guessed, the NPP in government could not have dared any leading member of the NDC from it strongholds because the party would have come to the member’s aide.
“When I was sitting down I asked myself a question that if NPP was in power and NDC was in opposition and their Volta Regional chairman or a regional chairman in the north, did something can we do this to him? Can he be arrested just like that and humiliated? You dare not because if you go to the Volta Region there is that unity that if you touch an activist at that level you won’t dare. Because of unity something will push you. I realized that a whole Ashanti Region, the base of NPP and our regional chairman has been arrested and humiliated but because the opponents realized that there is no unity. There is rampant arrests, then they give bail asking you to bring properties all because they have gauged our mood and have realized that we are not unity and so even if you arrest one they won’t care. You see, you can say that it is not you but it’s another but the NDC are very smart they always follow their arrests with narratives that if you are not careful you will think the arrested person is guilty. Look at the case of Kwabena Adu-Boahene, a whole national security operative that we know how sensitive their work is but they put out a narrative that suggests that he is a thief, he has stolen money that is NDC for you”, he told host Omanhene Kwabena Asante.
The NPP after landing in opposition has been working to reorganize the party. But this has not come easy especially after it decided to elect it next flagbearer in January 2026 when the usual order has been to elect executives at various levels of the party. The party has sharply been divided further because of the contest as flagbearer aspirants and loyalists have been attacking and accusing each other. In all five people including the 2024 flagbearer, are vying for the seat.
For instance, another aspirant, Ken Agyapong, is on record to have said that he will not defend the NPP now because he does not want his words to be used against him by his opponents in the contest.
By Gifty Boateng