NDC Losing 17 Sitting MPs Is Not Such A Big Blow: Ben Ephson Advises Party To Unite Behind New Faces

• Pollster Ben Ephson has said it is not a problem that the opposition NDC lost 17 sitting MPs during the party's primaries
• Ephson said the new faces are young and seem poised to deliver victory for the NDC in 2024
• He told YEN.com.gh that the NDC must rather focus on dealing with tensions that arose during the parliamentary primaries and assure the 17 MPs of the party's support

Pollster Ben Ephson has rejected suggestions that the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has shot itself in the foot for voting out 17 incumbent lawmakers during its May 13, 2023 primaries.

He said while a few of the MPs who were ousted raised eyebrows, the outcome of the NDC parliamentary outcomes does not foretell anything significant in next year's general elections.

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There have been concerns that the party could pay a big price in 2024 due to the ousting of the 17 sitting MPs.

The editor of the Daily Dispatch newspaper told YEN.com.gh in an exclusive interview that the party must instead focus on tensions that have erupted after the primaries in Asawase and Abura Asebu-Kwamankese, among others.

"The Council of Elders of the NDC, their flagbearer John Dramani Mahama must meet all the 17 and assure them that they will be sorted out if the party wins in 2024," he advised.

According to the polls analyst, such an assurance might event do well to get the 17 ousted MPs to tow the line of the Minority side in Parliament until elections in 2024.

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"For me, the two biggest shocks in the NDC parliamentary primaries is the loss of ABA Fuseini in the Sagnerigu constituency and Dr Kwabena Donkor in Pru East," he told YEN.com.gh.

According to Ben Ephson, some of the candidates who ousted incumbent MPs are young and energetic, which is good for the party.

He says it would in the best interest of the rank and file of the opposition party to bury their differences and rally their support behind the new candidates before and during the 2024 parliamentary polls.

NDC leadership blamed for the big fall of 17 sitting MPs

Meanwhile, MP for Asawase, who retained his seat after a bitter contest during the primaries, Muntaka Mubarak, has pointed accusing fingers at the NDC leadership over the defeat of the sitting NDC MPs.

He said the sudden change in the party's leadership in Parliament not long ago was a coup that the party is paying for.

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Mahama's 99% vote at primaries means little for 2024

In a related story, YEN.com.gh reported that Ben Ephson has advised John Mahama and the NDC to be careful about seeing John Mahama's huge margin of victory as a sign that the party is in a pole position to win in 2024.

The renowned polls analyst explained that factors such as how the opposition party handles creeping internal party issues could play a role.

The editor of the Daily Dispatch newspaper said it is too early for any survey to make a credible prediction about which party, NDC or NPP, will win the presidential polls in 2024.

Source: YEN.com.gh