Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the Minority Leader in Parliament, has stated that he won’t publicly back any NPP flagbearer aspirant due to his leadership role, which requires neutrality to maintain party unity and credibility. He emphasized that showing open support could compromise his ability to mediate and reconcile factions within the party after the primaries .
Afenyo-Markin explained that he has a role to play after the January 31st primaries, where he would need to do “midnight walking” to bring people together, and publicly declaring support for a candidate would make it difficult for him to be trusted in this role. He also praised the five aspirants for their courage and commitment to leading the party to victory, stating that their determination gives him confidence in the NPP’s future .
While Afenyo-Markin has private preferences, he believes it’s essential to remain publicly neutral. He has shared his position with his deputies and other parliamentary leaders, some of whom have respectfully disagreed but maintained decency in their public declarations .
Key Reasons for Afenyo-Markin’s Neutrality:
Leadership Role: As Minority Leader, he needs to maintain party unity and credibility.
Mediation: He wants to be able to reconcile factions within the party after the primaries.
Credibility: Publicly declaring support would compromise his ability to be trusted in his role . Afenyo-Markin emphasized that the internal competition is a sign of the party’s strength and future potential, and once the new leader is chosen, the party will focus on rebranding and uniting behind its new leader .
