New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Chairman aspirant Sammy Crabbe has raised concerns about what he describes as a decline in openness and intellectual engagement within the party.

He says the shrinking space for debate and differing views has driven some capable members away, with some eventually joining the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Speaking on Channel One TV on Tuesday, September 22, Mr Crabbe said the NPP previously allowed members greater freedom to engage, think independently and challenge ideas.

“Within the NPP there was kind of freedom. There was a latitude. You engage, and then you think, and, you know, you try to make your way through it. Yes, it is less so now, unfortunately,” he said.

According to him, changes in how the party’s constitution was handled also contributed to a decline in participation among some of its members.

“I think that the culture was radically changed, you know, the way we even attacked our constitution. It in itself made good people move away, be scared to really engage and drive it,” he said.

Mr Crabbe, however, maintained that the NPP still has people with significant knowledge and expertise.

He said the challenge was how to organise that knowledge and channel it effectively.

“They are good people; I can see knowledge. I can feel it. When you talk to people, they have a lot of knowledge, but how do you organise this knowledge? How do you put it out objectively?” he asked.

He further blamed what he described as growing intolerance for the loss of some members to the NDC.

“So we created a lot of space, and people could challenge and argue. And I think that space has been narrowed. And there’s a lot of intolerance,” he said.

Mr Crabbe said some former NPP members who moved to the NDC had subsequently risen to prominence within the opposition party.

“So people move from our party, and they move on to the NDC. And then they are the star performers,” he added.