From ex-Chairman to Bank of New York Veep: Meet the men battling to lead the NPP

The four men contesting the NPP National Chairmanship position The New Patriotic Party (NPP) is set to elect new national executives as the party begins preparations for the 2028 general elections, with the National Chairman position emerging as one of the key contests. The race has attracted several experienced party figures, each seeking to lead the party’s organisational and mobilisation efforts at a time when the NPP is working to rebuild its structures and regain political power. The National Chairman is one of the most influential positions in the NPP’s national leadership structure, with responsibility for helping to provide strategic direction, coordinate the party’s activities and strengthen its structures across the country. The position also plays a key role in maintaining unity and discipline within the party and working with other national executives to advance the party’s political objectives. Aside from this, the National Chairman of the party has a seat in cabinet should his party win power, to ensure that all the promises the party made to voters in their manifestos are implemented. This article takes a closer look at the men contesting the National Chairman position, their backgrounds, political experience and roles within the NPP as they seek the votes of delegates during the primaries, which are slated for Saturday, October 3, 2026. 1. John Boadu John Boadu, the first on the ballot paper, is a former General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party. John Boadu served as Acting General Secretary of the NPP in 2015 following the suspension of the then General Secretary, Kwabena Agyei Agyepong. He was subsequently elected substantive General Secretary in 2018, a position he held until he was voted out in 2022. The former General Secretary is regarded as a grassroots person, having risen through the party’s structures from the grassroots to its national leadership. He has previously served as a Polling Station Chairman, Constituency Secretary, Greater Accra Regional Research and Information Officer, National Youth Treasurer and National Youth Organiser of the NPP. He has also served as Deputy National Communications Director and National Organiser of the party. John Boadu holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Ghana Business School. He has also held positions in NPP governments, including serving as a board member of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR); a board member of GOIL Company Limited and the Acting Director-General, State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA). 2. Sammy Crabbe: Sammy Crabbe, who is second on the ballot paper, is a former Second Vice Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). Crabbe is also a long-serving member of the party, who has held leadership positions at both the regional and national levels. NPP Chairmanship Race: How Boadu, Crabbe, Afoko, Agyarko lined up on ballot He served as Greater Accra Regional Chairman for four years before later becoming the party’s Second National Vice Chairman in 2014. In December 2015, he was suspended indefinitely by the NPP’s National Executive Committee alongside then National Chairman Paul Afoko and General Secretary Kwabena Agyepong after disagreements over the party’s handling of Afoko’s suspension. Outside politics, Crabbe is a businessman. He founded ACS-BPS, a data-entry company, and was involved in the establishment of Ghana International Airlines. Crabbe holds a PhD in Business and Management from the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom. 3. Paul Afoko: The third man on the ballot paper, Paul Afoko, is a former National Chairman of the NPP. Paul Afoko, another long-serving member of the party, served on the party’s National Council and rose to the national chairmanship in 2014, becoming the first person from northern Ghana to occupy the position. In 2015, he was suspended indefinitely by the NPP’s disciplinary structures, alongside then General Secretary Kwabena Agyepong and Second Vice Chairman Sammy Crabbe. Afoko challenged the basis and legality of his suspension, leading to a prolonged legal dispute over the matter. Aside from politics, Afoko is an astute businessman from Sandema in the Upper East Region. Paul Afoko had his secondary education at Bawku Secondary School and Navrongo Secondary School before continuing his education in the United Kingdom at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). 4. Boakye Agyarko Boakye Kyeremanteng Agyarko, the fourth on the ballot paper, is a former Minister of Energy under the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government. Boakye Agyarko, a banker and an economist, is another long-standing member of the New Patriotic Party. He was the party’s National Campaign Manager for the 2012 general elections and subsequently served as Policy Adviser to the party’s presidential candidate during the 2016 election campaign. Agyarko spent more than two decades working at the Bank of New York in the United States, where he rose to the position of Vice President and Head of Global Investment Management. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Ghana; an advanced professional certificate in Banking from the American Institute of Banking and an MBA in Financial Economics from Pace University in New York. BAI/VPO Inside Ghana’s Abandoned Engineering Powerhouse: What Went Wrong? Source: GhanaWeb