Dr Bawumia backs Afenyo-Markin as Minority Leader amid feud with Sammy Gyamfi

New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has expressed confidence in Alexander Afenyo-Markin’s leadership of the Minority in Parliament amid an escalating dispute between the Minority Leader and GoldBod Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi.

Mr Afenyo-Markin disclosed that he met Dr Bawumia at his private residence in Accra on Monday, August 24, 2026, to discuss party matters and the Minority’s agenda ahead of Parliament’s emergency sitting.

According to Mr Afenyo-Markin, Dr Bawumia reaffirmed his confidence in his leadership and urged the Minority to remain focused on questions surrounding the financial implications of the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP).

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“Dr Bawumia expressed his full confidence in my leadership of the Minority,” Mr Afenyo-Markin said.

“He urged me to remain focused on the loss of over $1.7 billion, equivalent to 1.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), arising from the operations of GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana under the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme.”

He said Dr Bawumia also urged the Minority to use parliamentary procedures to ensure the government is held accountable.

“He called on the Minority, under my leadership, to do everything within the rules of the House to ensure the Mahama government is held fully accountable to the people of Ghana for this loss,” Mr Afenyo-Markin said.

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The meeting comes days after a heated public dispute between Mr Afenyo-Markin and Mr Gyamfi over the financial cost of the DGPP.

Mr Afenyo-Markin has cited an August 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF) report which he says shows that the scaling-up of the programme in 2025 resulted in losses of more than $1.7 billion, equivalent to about 1.5% of GDP.

GoldBod, however, has rejected the description of the amount as a loss incurred by the institution.

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Mr Gyamfi has argued that GoldBod acted only as a buying agent for the Bank of Ghana and was not responsible for the subsequent sale of the gold, determination of selling prices or negotiation of off-take agreements.

The disagreement escalated after Mr Gyamfi described Mr Afenyo-Markin as an “extortionist” over the Minority’s demands for answers.

Mr Afenyo-Markin subsequently announced that he would pursue legal remedies over what he described as defamatory claims against him.

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“On the defamatory statements made against me personally, I intend to pursue the appropriate legal remedies,” he said in a post on X on Saturday, August 22.

He also accused his critics of attempting to divert attention from the financial questions he had raised.

“Over the past week, all manner of insults and personal attacks have been directed at me, apparently in an attempt to impugn my character and divert attention from the substantive questions I have raised,” he said.

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Mr Afenyo-Markin said the controversy would not distract the Minority from its scrutiny of GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana.