Oquaye Report Exposes Flaws in NPP’s Campaign Strategy Ahead of the 2024 Elections

A scathing internal report authored by Prof. Mike Oquaye has shed light on deep cracks within the then ruling party’s communications strategy leading up to the 2024 General Elections, with top officials of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) expressing frustration over what they describe as a disjointed and outdated approach to voter engagement.

The report, which is currently circulating among top party executives, features blunt assessments from key figures, including the National Organiser, Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B. On page 25 of the document, Nana B criticized the campaign’s lack of cohesion, likening it to the then opposition NDC’s struggle to clearly articulate their flagship “24-hour economy” policy.

“The campaign communications lacked a unified theme. Every communicator went out saying whatever they felt like,” Nana B stated, warning that such inconsistency created confusion among the electorate and weakened the party’s message.

He referenced the party’s use of COVID-19 relief measures—such as free water and electricity—as campaign highlights in 2020, but expressed concern over the decision to continue marketing those same interventions in 2024 despite the subsequent introduction of taxes to recover the costs.

“After the 2020 elections, we turned around and taxed the people, shifting the narrative to say the water and electricity were only free temporarily. Yet here we are in 2024, still using ‘free water and electricity’ as campaign talking points, even though Ghanaians have already paid for them,” he said.

The National Organiser further lamented what he described as an underestimation of the electorate’s awareness, insisting that many within the party still believed that old tactics from 2016 would continue to work.

“Many of our communicators underestimated the intelligence of Ghanaians, thinking they would once again fall for the same 2016-style propaganda. But the people have moved on, they’ve become discerning,” he added.

The report also points fingers at influential social commentators like Kelvin Taylor, accusing them of eroding public trust in the government with persistent counter-narratives.

Political analysts believe the revelations in the Prof. Oquaye report could spark a reckoning within the NPP as it prepares for what is widely expected to be a hotly contested 2028 election. Meanwhile, calls for strategic recalibration and stronger internal discipline are gaining momentum within party ranks.

The full report is expected to be discussed at the next National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, where some are already calling for sweeping changes to the party’s communication machinery.