The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, has described early discussions within the National Democratic Congress (NDC) about President John Dramani Mahama’s successor as a distraction from the government’s core mandate.
Speaking in an interview on Bolgatanga-based A1 Radio, Dr. Ayine, who is also the Member of Parliament for Bolga East, cautioned party members against premature flagbearership debates, warning that they could divert attention from national development priorities.
He stressed that such talks undermine the administration’s efforts to fulfil its social contract with Ghanaians, especially as President Mahama marks the end of his first year in office.
“I am more interested in working to be a good Attorney General and serving the people of this country. I am not very keen on who succeeds the President. In fact, it is not something I think about regularly because I believe it is a distraction. The President has done just one year. We should allow him to continue working,” Dr. Ayine said.
As a prominent figure in the NDC’s intellectual wing, Dr. Ayine emphasised that political ambitions should align with the party’s constitutional processes.
He outlined that internal elections must precede any flagbearership contest, starting with branch-level polls, followed by constituency and regional executive elections, and then a National Delegates Congress to elect national officers.
“At the appropriate time—after we have conducted our party elections and selected our branch, constituency, regional, and national executives—then those who wish to contest can come forward,” he added. Dr. Ayine urged party loyalists and appointees to channel their energies into supporting governance initiatives rather than focusing on the 2028 elections.
He noted that ordinary Ghanaians are more concerned about the impact of the government’s welfare-enhancing programmes than internal party power struggles.
“We should be more interested in the welfare-enhancing programmes of the government than in who is going to succeed His Excellency,” he stated. With 2026 expected to focus on intensified domestic revenue reforms, the Attorney General maintained that the administration’s success will be measured by its tangible benefits to citizens.