Counsel to former President Akufo-Addo has said that the flagbearer of Movement for Change, Alan Kyerematen, would have been the frontrunner in the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) upcoming presidential primaries had he remained in the party.

Speaking on Joy Prime's Prime Insight on Saturday, October 18, 2025, Ekow Abaka Essuman noted that timing and patience are critical in politics, stressing that Mr. Kyerematen’s departure from the party cost him a strong opportunity for a political comeback.

“If Alan Kyerematen had stayed in the NPP after losing the primaries to Dr. Bawumia, around this time, he would have probably been the frontrunner in our primary,” Mr. Essuman said.

When asked if he felt Mr. Kyerematen had lost a political opportunity, he replied:

“Yes, politics is all about timing. You bid your time, or you find the right opportunity, and then you strike. Barack Obama, when he realized that the opportunity window had opened, he struck.”

Mr. Kyerematen, who served as Minister of Trade and Industry under President Akufo-Addo, resigned from the New Patriotic Party in 2023 after placing third in the party’s Super Delegates Congress.

He subsequently formed the Movement for Change and contested the 2024 presidential election as an independent candidate.