A member of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) Communication Team, Abdulai Sakra Alhassan, has described all five candidates contesting the New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential primaries as lacking credibility.

Speaking on JoyNews’ AM Show on Friday, January 2, Mr Alhassan said the inability of the NPP to clearly project a strong candidate reflects what he described as a credibility gap among the contenders.

“There’s something around the five people, because for me, if those five people were competent enough, by now you should have a candidate,” he said.

“…None of them is credible enough. Whoever comes out is likely to lead Ghana. And for me, where I’m sitting, out of the five, there’s no credible candidate,” he added.

Reacting to suggestions that the NDC may be uncomfortable with the possibility of former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia emerging as the NPP’s flagbearer ahead of the 2028 elections, Mr Alhassan dismissed such claims.

“Not at all. When he was even in power, he had 41%. Imagine being in opposition, what can he do?”

He went further to suggest that Dr Bawumia should consider exiting active politics.

“Let us be clear, for me, if I were Bawumia, or anyone around him who advises him, I would tell him that he should just retire from politics because he can never, in any way, match any of the NDC’s candidates,” he stated.

When asked if any of the five NPP aspirants could compete effectively against the NDC’s potential candidates, Mr Alhassan responded bluntly.

“No one. If you combine all five together, they can’t match any of our candidates.”

However, he alleged that the NPP establishment had already settled on Dr Bawumia as its preferred candidate.

“But definitely, the authority is backing Bawumia,” he claimed. “So we know for sure that he’s the only one they will bring. The system is supporting him. They’ve made up their mind.”

Mr Alhassan further alleged that the timing and conduct of the NPP’s internal processes were deliberately structured to favour the former Vice President.

“The reason why they are even going for votes this particular month is all orchestrated to support one particular candidate, which is Bawumia. They want him to win, no matter how,” he said.

He reiterated his view that none of the aspirants presents a credible alternative.

“So, for me, I don’t believe there will be one candidate who stands out among the five. No credible candidate.”