The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has reaffirmed its directive that government appointees must resign from their positions before they can contest the party’s upcoming executive elections.
According to the party’s Acting IT Director, Jibril Mahdi, the guideline remains unchanged, stressing that any government appointee who has not resigned will be ineligible to contest.
“Whoever is in office is not qualified to contest our elections,” Mahdi said on Accra-based Citi FM on Saturday, July 25, 2026.
His comments come as the NDC prepares for elections to fill key national executive positions. The party has already instructed all government appointees with ambitions of seeking executive office to step down before submitting their nomination forms.
Mahdi revealed that, despite widespread reports of resignations, the party headquarters has yet to receive formal notification from most of the affected individuals. He explained that the party would only be able to officially confirm resignations during the nomination and vetting process.
“Officially, we have not received any notice from anybody that has resigned. Whatever we are hearing is based on the social media information because, at party headquarters, we are not the appointing authority,” he said.
He, however, acknowledged that some resignations have been confirmed, citing the Eastern Regional Chairman, the Eastern Regional Communications Officer, and Leland Tay, who is seeking election as the party’s National Chairman.
The directive is expected to influence the aspirations of several government officials who may have intended to contest party executive positions while retaining their public appointments.
Mahdi also ruled out the possibility of exemptions for appointees hoping to bypass the resignation requirement, indicating that no formal requests for such waivers had been submitted.
“For now, whoever is still in office is automatically ineligible to contest as it stands,” he said.
The NDC is expected to continue implementing its internal electoral timetable following the completion of branch-level elections, as preparations intensify for the next phase of the party’s internal electoral process.
