Former Manhyia South Legislator and 2024 Running Mate to Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh (Napo), has admitted that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) “won the battle but lost the war” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, although the government effectively managed the health crisis, the political cost became evident in the 2020 elections. He pointed out that the NPP’s parliamentary majority sharply declined, with the party’s earlier lead of over one million votes dropping to less than half.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh explained that several tough decisions taken during the pandemic had unintended political consequences. He added that the resulting economic hardships faced by Ghanaians further contributed to the party’s electoral setbacks.
“I must say that if you take the context in Ghana, we did so well under COVID that it became a commendation of even advanced countries on how we tackled that. But like I say, you can win the battle and lose the war,” he said.
“Because of the decisions that we had to take or we took, we bore the consequences of those decisions. Revenue evaporated, especially in a country where your revenue mainly comes from your port duties and levies and charges, and expenditure went through the roof because unlike other countries, nurses and teachers who stayed home for months were paid, civil service offices that were closed were still paid, expenditure ballooned, and economic conditions were terribly harsh,” he stated.
