Sam George Reveals What Happened Before He Challenged E.T. Mensah in Ningo-Prampram

Speaking at the VL Exposure 2025 event at the British Council in Accra on August 30, Sam George explained that many people considered his decision to challenge Mensah unreasonable because of the older politician’s influence and long service in the NDC.

“The person I went up against in the primaries was an institution. When we were in primary school we learnt about him. And then now I say I am going to contest that person. Everybody said I was a madman.”

He was only 30 years old at the time, while Mensah was 70. According to Sam George, many of the delegates were older party members who had worked with Mensah for years. This made the challenge even more difficult.

He recalled that some people advised him to wait until he was 50 or 60 before attempting to contest for such an important political position. Others described him and his young supporters as arrogant and disrespectful for daring to challenge the veteran politician.

But Sam George said he refused to allow those comments to discourage him.

“That’s a typical Ghanaian thing. When they can’t deal with your energy, they brand you arrogant and disrespectful. Me, I’ve worn it as a badge, call me whatever, I don’t care. I have owned it.”

He also explained how he adopted the name Dzata, meaning lion, as part of his political identity. He wanted a symbol that reflected his confidence, energy and determination to succeed.

The contest eventually became one of the major surprises in the NDC’s 2015 parliamentary primaries. Sam George defeated Mensah, who had represented Ningo-Prampram in Parliament since 1997. The results reported by Graphic Online showed Sam George polling 4,910 votes against Mensah’s 2,861.

However, the victory did not immediately end the disagreement between the two politicians. In a 2019 interview, Sam George denied sabotaging Mensah and insisted that the people of Ningo-Prampram had chosen him to represent them.