The 2024 Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has reiterated his commitment to addressing the welfare needs of party delegates as well as ordinary members when he is elected flagbearer and subsequently President in the 2028 elections.

Dr Bawumia, who first made this pledge while contesting for the NPP flagbearership in 2023, said the policy would be designed to operate fully whether the party is in or out of power, and would be targeted at meeting the specific welfare needs of members.

Emphasising that “an army marches on its stomach” and that the party cannot hope to recapture power if it fails to meet the welfare needs of its grassroots and structures, Dr Bawumia said research had shown that neglect was a major factor in why many supporters refused to vote in 2024.

He therefore planned to address this by rolling out a broad, sustainable plan for party welfare.

“We will roll out major, targeted welfare policies that directly address our welfare needs. I have ideas for a broad, effective and sustainable welfare programme for the NPP, and it will be one of my major initiatives when you give me your mandate to lead this party.

“One of the first steps would be to establish a Welfare Desk at every level of the party to collate data on who needs what, to ensure equitable distribution of opportunities. No adidigya or menyaa hwee.

“Among many things, we will also institute measures to ensure resources go directly to the grassroots to facilitate party work,” he pledged during engagements with current and former constituency executives and former government officials in the Eastern Region.

Dr Bawumia’s message of building an inclusive, formidable party ahead of the NPP’s flagbearer contest on 31 January has seen him meet with various stakeholders across the country, yielding remarkable results.

On Wednesday, 15 of the 23 NPP MPs in the Eastern Region declared their support for his candidature, describing him as the most marketable and prepared contender for the flagbearer position.