New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Chairman aspirant Sammy Crabbe has raised concerns about what he describes as a decline in openness and intellectual debate within the party, saying the trend has driven some experienced members away.
Speaking on Channel One TV on Tuesday, September 22, Mr Crabbe said the NPP previously offered members greater freedom to express their views, challenge ideas and engage in political discussions.
“Within the NPP there was kind of freedom. There was a latitude. You engage, and then you think, and, you know, you try to make your way through it. Yes, it is less so now, unfortunately,” he said.
According to him, changes in the handling of the party’s constitution also contributed to reduced participation and discouraged some members from engaging actively in party affairs.
“I think that the culture was radically changed, you know, the way we even attacked our constitution. It in itself made good people move away, be scared to really engage and drive it,” he said.
‘We have the knowledge’
Mr Crabbe, however, maintained that the NPP still has members with considerable knowledge and expertise, but said the party faces challenges in organising and effectively deploying that intellectual capital.
“They are good people; I can see knowledge. I can feel it. When you talk to people, they have a lot of knowledge, but how do you organise this knowledge? How do you put it out objectively?” he asked.
He also attributed the departure of some members to what he described as growing intolerance within the party.
“So we created a lot of space, and people could challenge and argue. And I think that space has been narrowed. And there’s a lot of intolerance,” he said.
Mr Crabbe noted that some former NPP members who subsequently joined the National Democratic Congress (NDC) had gone on to play prominent roles within the opposition party.
“So people move from our party, and they move on to the NDC. And then they are the star performers,” he added.
