The incumbent Upper East Regional Youth Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Salahu-Deen Musah, has returned to the race to retain his position, saying the party’s Youth Wing requires reorganisation and strengthening before he can pursue any higher office within the party.
The 37-year-old politician explained that although he had initially set his sights on the position of Upper East Regional Secretary, extensive consultations with party elders, stakeholders, family members and friends convinced him that his immediate responsibility was to consolidate the Youth Wing.
Mr. Musah had earlier picked nomination forms to contest the Regional Secretary position and successfully went through the party’s vetting process, securing the number one spot on the ballot after balloting.
However, the dynamics of the race changed after the two aspirants contesting the Regional Youth Organiser position, Jonathan Abugre, popularly known as Contempt, and Samuel Akumbo Awintariba, widely known as Wakiki were disqualified by the party’s vetting committee for exceeding the NPP constitutional age limit of 39 years for the office.
Following their disqualification, the party reopened nominations to allow eligible candidates to contest the Youth Organiser position.
Mr. Musah subsequently picked nomination forms for the Youth Organiser race while formally withdrawing from the Regional Secretary contest in line with the party’s electoral guidelines. He later underwent a virtual vetting process and emerged as the sole qualified candidate.
Another aspirant, Bashiru Akparibo, who also filed to contest the position, was disqualified after the vetting committee ruled that his completed nomination forms were submitted after the stipulated deadline.
Speaking after the vetting process, Mr. Musah said his decision to return was guided by a shared belief among party stakeholders that the Youth Wing needed renewed leadership and stronger organisational structures.
“I came to the conclusion that I need to properly organise the Youth Wing before moving to a different position,” he stated.
He added that the encouragement and support he received from family members, friends and party faithful further strengthened his resolve to seek another term as Regional Youth Organiser.
With the completion of the nomination and vetting processes, Mr. Musah is expected to continue serving as the NPP Upper East Regional Youth Organiser for the 2026–2030 term.
Expressing gratitude to party executives, stakeholders, sympathisers, family members and friends, he also commended the vetting committee for conducting what he described as a successful process.
Looking ahead, Mr. Musah pledged to build a more united, vibrant and effective Youth Wing by consolidating the gains made between 2022 and 2024.
He said his administration would focus on repositioning the Youth Wing to play a more strategic role in the party’s activities across the Upper East Region, while strengthening grassroots mobilisation and empowering young party members ahead of future electoral contests.
