as Bawumia Loyalist Targets Dissenting MP
By Gifty Boateng
A violent confrontation in the ruling New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Ashanti Region stronghold has exposed deep-seated factionalism and a campaign of intimidation targeting MPs who defy the party’s presidential frontrunner, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia.
The incident, which saw hired enforcers assault dissenting delegates, centres on a vendetta by Bawumia’s key lieutenant against a first-term MP backing his rival.
On 23 January, during a routine delegates’ meeting in the Ejisu constituency addressed by Dr Bawumia, his chief loyalist in the region, Dr Nana Ayew Afriyie, the MP for neighbouring Effiduase, made a calculated provocation.
In front of the gathering, he declared that “Ejisu has two MPs,” and physically raised the hand of local figure Helena Mensah, proclaiming her “the next MP.” Mensah, who placed second in the last Ejisu primary, is widely regarded as a proxy for the Bawumia-Afriyie faction and is said to enjoy the backing of a former Ashanti Regional Minister.
The sitting MP, Kwabena Boateng who succeeded the late Deputy Finance Minister John Kumah was absent. Boateng has broken ranks to support Bawumia’s main challenger, the populist MP Kennedy Agyapong, making him a target for discipline.
Dr Afriyie’s declaration, which sources confirm was his third such public attempt to undermine Boateng, triggered immediate protest. Richmond Atta Baffour, a local delegate, stood to object. In video testimony and eyewitness accounts obtained by The New Republic, matters escalated rapidly.
Four ‘macho men’ understood to be political enforcers accompanying the Bawumia entourage surrounded Baffour. One, identified as a delegate from Oforikrom constituency, kicked him. Police officers present ordered Baffour to leave for “disrupting the meeting,” but took no action against the assailants.
A second confrontation ensued when a party communicator, Alexander, criticised the events; he was shoved and his necklace torn off by the same enforcers. Witnesses say Dr Bawumia departed the event visibly displeased with the hostile reception, which starkly contrasted with the warmth of previous visits.
This incident is not isolated. Baffour and other Ejisu executives describe a sustained campaign by Dr Afriyie to discredit MP Boateng. This includes publicly and falsely accusing him of misappropriating 2024 campaign funds an allegation Boateng has formally refuted with documentation.
Dr Afriyie’s tactics reflect his reputation for ruthlessness; he is the MP allegedly heard on a leaked audio recording vowing to “deal with” former President Nana Akufo-Addo after Bawumia’s victory.
The Ejisu clash is a microcosm of a brewing party-wide purge. With the NPP presidential primary set for 31 January, a climate of fear is growing among MPs and national executive aspirants who have backed candidates other than Dr Bawumia.
Party history is littered with examples of figures who lost their positions after supporting a losing presidential candidate. The use of “macho men” to quell dissent signals a shift towards coercion, suggesting that internal democratic contests are being supplanted by enforced loyalty.
The Afriyie-Mensah project in Ejisu is seen as a pilot for this top-down model: a sitting MP is to be pre-emptively removed not by voters in a general election, but by party machinery in a primary, for the crime of supporting the ‘wrong’ presidential aspirant.
The violence in Ejisu presents a serious strategic liability for Dr Bawumia. It undermines his message of unity and exposes the brute-force methods some of his lieutenants employ. It also risks alienating the very Ashanti base he depends on, as grassroots resentment grows against heavy-handed impositions from Accra and Kumasi elites.
The NPP is entering a period of brutal internal realignment. The events in Ejisu demonstrate that the battle for the presidential nomination is now a fight for total control of the party apparatus.
The use of physical intimidation to silence dissent and unseat MPs sets a dangerous precedent, suggesting that for some factions, the cost of disloyalty will be paid not just at the ballot box, but through orchestrated violence and sabotage. How Bawumia manages or fails to manage his lieutenant Dr Afriyie will be a key test of his command over the party he seeks to lead.