Former Acting National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Danquah Smith Butey, has rejected the party’s newly approved constitutional amendment making an elected presidential candidate the leader of the party, describing the process as a “coup” against the NPP’s constitutional order.
Mr Butey, speaking on Akoma 87.9 FM’s Midday News on Monday, October 5, 2026, insisted that the amendment was procedurally flawed and could not override the authority he exercised as Acting National Chairman at the time the decision was made.
According to him, he had earlier directed that consideration of the proposed constitutional amendments be deferred to another National Delegates Conference because of time constraints.
He said the October 3 conference in Kumasi should have focused exclusively on the election of national officers, with the proposed constitutional changes left for a subsequent conference.
“Because of time, I think we have to postpone the amendments and do with the elections only because there’s no time so that the amendment can come next conference,” Mr Butey said.
He, however, claimed that despite his directive, the party proceeded with the amendment process under the leadership of lawyer Frank Davis, resulting in delegates approving the controversial changes.
Mr Butey strongly disputed the legitimacy of that process, arguing that Mr Davis had no authority to overturn a decision taken by him while he remained Acting National Chairman.
“No individual, including Frank Davis, Esq., had the authority to overturn my decision because my tenure as Acting National Chairman had not expired,” he argued.
He maintained that the NPP Constitution provides him with 14 days to complete his tenure and, consequently, his decision to defer consideration of the amendments remained binding until that period elapsed.
Mr. Butey therefore called for the proposed amendments to be tabled again at the next National Delegates Conference, where delegates, he said, could properly deliberate on and decide their fate.
“It was a coup against the party’s constitutional order, not an amendment,” he maintained, insisting that the process could not be legitimised simply because delegates subsequently approved the proposal.
The controversy follows the adoption by NPP delegates of a major constitutional amendment at the party’s National Delegates Conference in Kumasi on Saturday, October 3, 2026.
The amendment, contained in Motion Number 10, alters Articles 10, 4, 1 and 13 of the NPP Constitution to provide that where the party has an elected presidential candidate, that candidate shall assume leadership of the party.
The provision effectively creates a direct link between the NPP’s presidential candidacy and leadership of the party, a move that could significantly reshape the party’s internal power structure.
The delegates also approved a related provision clarifying the leadership arrangement when the NPP is in government. Under the new provision, the President remains the leader of the party while the NPP is in government until a new presidential candidate is elected.
The amendment has attracted particular attention because of its potential implications for the party’s former presidential candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. He could assume the position of party leader if he is elected as the NPP’s presidential candidate for the next general election.
Mr. Butey’s rejection of the process now introduces a fresh constitutional and procedural dispute within the NPP, raising questions over the validity of the amendments and whether they were properly adopted in accordance with the party’s governing rules.
Source: Felix Nyaaba/expressnewsghana.com
