By Edward Acquah
Accra, July 20, GNA – Delegates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Saturday endorsed the Party’s constitutional overhaul in a bid to reform the NPP and rebuild for election 2028 and beyond.
More than 5,500 delegates met at the University of Ghana Stadium in Accra to deliberate on 56 constitutional reform proposals submitted by the Constitutional Amendment Committee, led by Mr Frank Davies.
The Conference, on the theme: “Rebuilding together with our values” is the highest decision-making body of the Party.
By the close of the Conference, a total of 54 constitutional reform proposals had been accepted, with only two proposals being rejected.
One of the major reforms accepted was the complete abolition of the Special Electoral College System, and the expansion of the base of delegates who elect the party’s presidential candidate, by 40 per cent.
The reform will lead to the abolishment of Article 13(1)(9) of the NPP constitution which established the Special Electoral College.
The new structure would include members of the National Council, National Executive Committee, Regional and Constituency Executive Committees, Electoral Area Coordinators, Polling Station Executives, National Council of Elders, National Patrons, all past National Directors, sitting and past MPs, and TESCON representatives from each recognised tertiary institution.
The rest are all card-bearing ministers and deputy ministers, MMDCEs, 15 delegates from every external branch, founding members, and three representatives each from special organs of the party.
Proponents of the reform argue that the existing electoral college structure is not representative enough.
Another major reform accepted by Council would make the National Chairman of the NPP the leader of the Party at all times.
The current position makes the President the leader of the Party when the Party is in Government and the Chairman the leader of the Party when the Party is in opposition.
A key reform proposal that equally received the backing of Conference would make it compulsory for all Government appointees and Chief Executive Officers who intend to contest for elections to resign 24-Hours before the election.
Meanwhile, a proposed amendment to cut the youth age limit to 35 was rejected. This meant that the age limit for a person to contest as youth organiser in the NPP was maintained at 40.
Another amendment proposal that was roundly rejected by Congress sought to give power to Regional and Constituency Executives to have oversight responsibility in electoral area and polling station elections.
It was the case of opponents of the proposal that such arrangements could lead to undue interference in the compilation of albums for elections at the lower level.
Mr Frank Davies told the delegates that the Party would move to effect the reforms approved by Congress in due course.
The exercise was largely calm and peaceful with no recorded major incident.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Joseph Osei-Owusu, Chairman of the Congress Planning Committee, said he was delighted about the enthusiasm exhibited by members of the Party.
He said the defeat suffered by the Party in the 2024 General Election sparked disappointment, leading to a lot of “blame-gaming” discussions in the media.
He said the turnout at the Congress offered him confidence that “we will recover and move forward.”
Mr George Abankwah-Yeboah, Former Treasurer, NPP, said the Congress was a major step towards uniting and rebuilding the Party and thanked the delegates for demonstrating resilience in their quest to reform the Party.
Touching on the two motions that were rejected by Congress, Mr Abankwah-Yeboah observed that there were not enough consultations by proponents of the proposals to better explain the rationale for the reforms.
The NPP has set Saturday, January 31, 2026, for its presidential primary to elect a flagbearer for the 2028 general elections.
The announcement was made at a meeting of the National Executive Committee held on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. The decision was subsequently endorsed by the party’s National Council.
GNA
Edited by Samuel Osei-Frempong