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Dr Dickson Adomako Kissi, a former Member of Parliament for Anyaa Sowutuom, has defended the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) presidential hopeful, Dr Bryan Acheampong, following the backlash he is receiving.
According to Adomako Kissi, the video may have been misunderstood or misrepresented as Dr Acheampong spoke to data.
He noted that Dr Bryan Acheampong made a point that if the NPP’s flagbearer was from a religious or ethnic group not tied to the Bawku conflict, the NPP’s political outcome might have been different in the 2024 elections.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily on Tuesday, August 26, Dr. Adomako Kissi urged the NPP to separate honest, data-driven analysis from ethnic or religious interpretations.
He stated, “Being candid and frank with data is not a sin. When you speak to data, you are not being tribalistic, and the religious thing didn’t matter here,” he stated.
“This issue is very touchy, but I think it is misinformation either to Dr. Bawumia or a misunderstanding by virtue of the people who channelled the message to him,” he noted.
His comments follow the controversial video of Dr Bryan Acheampong pointing to Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s tribe as being to blame for the NPP’s 2024 election defeat.
The lawmaker in his statement cited former President John Agyekum Kufuor and Akufo-Addo’s getting votes from the Kusasi, but Bawumia’s belonging to one side of the divide led to the NPP losing votes with the Kusasi.
According to Dr Bryan Acheampong, the NPP chose Dr Bawumia, who is a Mamprusi, one of the tribes in the Bawku Conflict caused the NPP to lose its seat in the Oti Region, Upper East, Upper West, and the Northern Region.
Speaking to a gathering, Dr Bryan Acheampong stated, “President Kufuor won all NPP votes in Kusasi, and President Akufo-Addo also did the same thing, but because the fight is between two tribes (Mamprusis and Kusasis) and we elected a flagbearer from one of them, we lost in the Oti Region, Upper East, Upper West, and the Northern Region.
“We lost all our seats because of the candidate we presented (Dr Mahamudu Bawumia), and he could be a victim of circumstance and not his fault, but the timing didn’t favour him”, he added.
Meanwhile, Kofi Tonto, an aide to Dr Bawumia, has said their campaign will be on policies and solutions, not divisive rhetoric.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Point of View on Monday, August 25, Mr Tonto stated, “We will focus on the message. We will not denigrate any group of people in Ghana. We will focus on the message because Ghana is gradually becoming a nation of one people in terms of even tribes. When you take a Ghanaian, you can get three or four tribes of that Ghanaian. That is the oneness that Ghana is increasingly becoming.
“Let us eschew tribal and religious bigotry. It is irresponsible. It is insensitive. It is not the right thing we must do as a political party,” he stated.
However, a poll by the Global Info Analytics on August 21, 2025, shows the former Vice President and NPP presidential candidate for the 2024 Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, is the leading candidate ahead of the party’s primaries in January 2026.
The Global Info Analytics shows Dr Mahamudu Bawumia running away with a commanding 52% lead, with his closest contender, Kennedy Agyapong, the former Assin Central MP, with 17%.
Dr Bryan Acheampong polled 3%, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, the former Education Minister, polled 1%.
Kwabena Agyapong, former General Secretary, Boakye Agyarko, and Addai Nimo all polling less than 1%.