How Kojo ‘Bamba’ Pulled Off a Stunning Upset to Become NPP First National Vice Chairman

Kojo ‘Bamba’ has stunned the New Patriotic Party (NPP) establishment, emerging as the party’s First National Vice Chairman after defeating 12 other contenders in a fiercely contested election.

The victory of Kwadwo Fosu Boadu, popularly known as Kojo Bamba, came at the NPP’s National Delegates Conference in Kumasi, where delegates elected a new team of national executives to steer the party for the next four years.

Bamba secured 3,160 votes, finishing ahead of several well-known figures in the party. Henry Nana Boakye came second with 3,061 votes, while Nana Akomea secured the third vice-chairmanship position with 2,987 votes.

The Surprise Nobody Saw Coming

Bamba’s victory was widely viewed as a surprise because he was competing against a field packed with experienced and high-profile NPP figures.

Among those he defeated were Nana Akomea, Henry Nana Boakye, Richard Ahiagba, Samuel Pyne, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, Masawudu Osman and Kwabena Abankwah Yeboah, among others.

Ahead of the election, Bamba was not widely regarded as one of the favourites. Reports indicate that some opinion polls placed him well behind the leading contenders, making his eventual victory even more striking.

His Grassroots Strategy Paid Off

While some of his opponents entered the race with lengthy political resumes, Bamba built his campaign around a simple message: the grassroots must be empowered and the party’s votes must be protected.

He repeatedly appealed to delegates as a grassroots man and urged them to choose experienced candidates while also giving him their support as the candidate who understood the party’s “foot soldiers.”

His campaign also repeatedly reminded delegates that he occupied number two on the ballot paper.

That strategy appears to have resonated with delegates.

From Auto Mechanic to National Party Leadership

Bamba’s political journey is one of the most unusual aspects of the victory.

He is reported to have started out as an auto mechanic in Kumasi’s Asafo area before becoming involved in NPP grassroots politics. He later became associated with the Delta Force group, a pro-NPP vigilante organisation that attracted national attention in 2017.

His involvement with Delta Force brought him into the national spotlight after members of the group stormed the Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council in March 2017.

Years later, Bamba has now moved from the controversial grassroots political scene to one of the NPP’s highest national executive positions.

A Victory Over Former Political Associates

The result is particularly striking because Bamba defeated several established party figures, including Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B.

Nana Boakye ultimately secured the second vice-chairmanship with 3,061 votes, only 99 votes behind Bamba.

The narrow gap between the two made the contest one of the most closely watched races at the conference.

“The Journey to 2028 Starts Now”

Following his victory, Bamba pledged to make the NPP’s grassroots structures a major priority as the party prepares for the 2028 general election.

He said the party would work to empower its grassroots members and protect its votes from the polling station through to the collation centres.

His message after the election was clear: the victory was not just about him, but about the party’s foot soldiers, constituency executives, youth and women’s organisers and delegates who supported his campaign.

With John Boadu also taking over as National Chairman, the new NPP leadership now faces the task of rebuilding the party and preparing it for the next presidential and parliamentary elections.

For Kojo Bamba, however, the journey from an auto mechanic and controversial grassroots figure to First National Vice Chairman of Ghana’s main opposition party represents one of the biggest political surprises to emerge from the NPP’s latest internal elections.