Former Education Minister and flagbearer aspirant, Dr. Yaw Adutwum, has distanced himself from efforts by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to issue an apology to Ghanaians over poor governance during its tenure.

On Monday, May 19, Former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, under the Akufo-Addo government, took responsibility for the government's shortcomings and issued an apology to Ghanaians on behalf of his former ministers during a recent engagement in London.

Reacting to this, the former Education Minister insisted he has no reason to apologise to Ghanaians, arguing that he delivered on the mandate entrusted to him under the Akufo-Addo government.

He believes the former Vice President failed Ghanaians in his leadership of the economy and therefore should be the one to render an apology, rather than involving individuals who delivered in their respective sectors.

“I am not a part of the apology. I came to the education sector, and many have said that if every other minister had worked like me… If you are working, you will certainly not please everyone. However, as the vice president who led the economic management team, if he wants to apologize, he should focus on the failed economy under him.

“In education, we did not fail the people of Ghana. Mo Ibrahim ranked us second. The people of Ghana are in awe of what I did in the sector. People see me and hail me for the work that I did for the sector, and so I owe no apology,” Yaw Adutwum stated.

He added that the former Vice President must own up and apologize for his failures in the sector that he led, and not just issue apologies en bloc.

During an address in London, United Kingdom (UK), the former Vice President linked the party's historic failure in the 2024 general elections to the party’s shortcomings while in power.

“The NPP did a lot of work, there’s no doubt about that, but we did not get everything right. We got quite a few things wrong, and I think that, on my own behalf and on behalf of the party, I apologise to all of you for us not getting the figures right,” he said.

In April, the 2024 running mate of the Movement for Change, Kwame Danso, criticized the New Patriotic Party (NPP) during the party’s “Thank You Tour” agenda. Kwame Danso urged the party to launch an apology tour in response to growing public frustration.

In an interview with Nana Jantuah on Nhyira FM’s Kuro Yi Mu Nsem, Mr. Danso described the NPP’s nationwide tour as “tone-deaf” and “misplaced,” particularly at a time when, in his view, economic hardships and poor policy decisions had contributed to the party’s electoral defeat.

“Instead of a 'Thank You Tour,' the NPP should embark on an apology tour to Ghanaians,” he declared.

He pointed to controversial initiatives such as the Electronic Levy (E-levy), the betting tax, and the National Cathedral project as examples of missteps that have alienated the public and damaged the party’s credibility.

“To regain appeal, the NPP should apologize for the introduction of the E-levy, betting tax, and the National Cathedral, in which they invested so much, just to dig a manhole for Ghanaians. Your ‘Thank You Tour’ lacks purpose without reconciliation with the people of Ghana,” he stressed.

Mr. Danso also called on the party to reposition itself as a responsible opposition in the current political climate, advising it to contribute constructively to national discourse rather than remain defensive.

“They should focus on offering constructive ideas rather than obstructing efforts aimed at national progress,” he said.

The NPP sought to "break the eight" and extend its governance for another four years under the leadership of Dr. Bawumia, who received the support of then-President Nana Akufo-Addo.

Dr. Bawumia contested against the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, and lost. At the end of the polls, the Electoral Commission (EC) declared that the NDC flagbearer polled 6,328,397 total valid votes, representing 56.55%, whereas Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia garnered 4,657,304 votes, representing 41.61%.

Before the EC officially declared its results, the former vice president conceded defeat. The parliamentary election also saw the NPP fall drastically in terms of seats won. The NDC obtained an absolute majority in Parliament by securing 183 seats, while the NPP lost its majority, securing only 88 seats.

Following the just-ended polls, the opposition party has gone into retrospection. A 12-member committee led by former Speaker of Parliament, Professor Mike Oquaye, investigated the factors behind the party's failure.

Although the report by the committee has been withheld from the general public, the General Secretary of the NPP, Justine Kodua, noted that the party’s downfall centered around its inability to focus on key projects in its strongholds, economic instability particularly the worsening value of the cedi against major trading currencies including the dollar aarrogance displayed by previous government officials, internal conflict, among other issues.

Presently, Dr. Bawumia believes the way forward for the party is to correct its errors and seize opportunities to reclaim power from the NDC government.

“I believe that, by the grace of God, if we are given another opportunity, we will get many things right because we have learnt the lessons of where we are going.”

Meanwhile, leadership of the NPP has directed its members to desist from discussing internal party matters on media platforms, citing Article 10(7)(5) of the NPP Constitution.