Political Scientist and Head of the Centre for European Studies at the University of Ghana, Dr. Kwame Asah-Asante, has said the outcome of the Akwatia by-election reflects a sharp increase in the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) goodwill.
Speaking on the AM Show on JoyNews, Dr. Asah-Asante explained that the by-election served as an important test for both major parties.
“This election was hinged on two tests: the test of resilience of the NPP and the test of declining goodwill of the NDC. You saw that NDC goodwill is increasing with amazing rapidity, but that of the NPP is declining,” he said.
He added that the results send a clear message to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) about the need to reorganise.
“It gives them homework—they need to put their house in order to be able to fight head-on,” Dr. Asah-Asante advised.
The political scientist noted that Akwatia remains a swing constituency where outcomes are often unpredictable, and under normal circumstances, the NPP would have held an advantage.
“If you look at a constituency that is a toss-up, like what we experienced yesterday, one would have thought all factors being equal, the NPP would’ve carried the day. But events took a different turn and we saw the results,” he explained.
While acknowledging the decline in the NPP’s performance, Dr. Asah-Asante cautioned against underestimating the party.
“So the NPP needs to sit up and work very hard. Yes, their numbers are dwindling, but they are still a force to reckon with in Parliament even though the numbers don’t favour them,” he added.
Source: Clara Seshie
