Former Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has cautioned against calls for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to select presidential candidates from the Akan ethnic group.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Point of View with Bernard Avle on Monday, October 6, 2025, Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu described such views as “dangerous” and detrimental to the unity and growth of the party.
“Some people even say that because the party’s support base is in Akan, we should fill it with an Akan [person]. To me, that is the most dangerous statement,” he warned.
He argued that insisting on an Akan candidate would alienate other communities and weaken the NPP’s ability to campaign across the country, particularly in northern Muslim communities.
Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu stressed that the NPP should remain inclusive and avoid promoting divisive rhetoric that undermines its national character.
“If you insist on always having an Akan as your presidential candidate, those who are making those statements, can you go to the Muslim communities in the North to campaign? When you think that they don’t deserve to lead the party.
“That is why I’m saying that that is a very dangerous statement and should not be encouraged at all,” he added.
