Accra, Jan. 20, GNA – The National Democratic Congress (NDC) will hold primaries to elect 116 parliamentary candidates for constituencies with sitting Members of Parliament, this weekend.

The primaries, which will take place simultaneously nationwide, is scheduled for Saturday, January, 21 to 24, 2012.

Sources close to the party told Ghana News Agency in Accra that the primaries would help the party elect its full complement of parliamentary candidates for Election 2012.

It said some few constituencies had been put on hold to allow the Electoral Commission (EC) to create new constituencies. Vetting of aspirants, which began nationwide on Thursday January 12, ended on Saturday January14.

The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party opened nominations for the primaries on November 24, 2011.

Filing of nominations ended on Friday, December, 23, 2011, with the election of candidates slated for the third week of January 2012.

Guidelines regulating the conduct of the election, are that men aspirants paid a non-refundable deposit of GH¢5000 while women aspirants paid GHc2,500 on submission of completed forms and the cost of nomination forms was GH¢200. The NDC has 116 parliamentarians, out of which the Northern Region has 22; Volta Region 21; Greater Accra Region 18; Western Region 11; Central Region 11; Brong Ahafo Region nine; Upper East Region eight; Upper West Region seven; Eastern Region seven; and Ashanti Region three.