...to contest parliamentary for seats

Wa, Aug 1, GNA - Prof Kassim Kasanga, Minister of Science and Environment and Mr Ambrose Dery, Deputy Attorney-General and Minister of Justice are among fifteen candidates aspiring to contest parliamentary election on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Upper West Region.

While Professor Kasanga has no challenger in the forthcoming NPP primaries in the Nadowli South constituency, Mr Dery would have to beat five other high profile candidates in order to get the chance to contest the Lawra/Nandom constituency in the 2004 parliamentary elections. Sources at the Regional Secretariat of the NPP named the other contestants in the constituency as Mr Nkumah Gyielle, a Lecturer at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and a member of the National Council of the party.

The rest of the aspirants for the constituency are Mr Clement Zuolo, a top official of the Internal Revenue Service; Mr Stephen Engmen, Special Assistant to the Upper West Regional Minister; Mr Emilio Musah, a lawyer and Mr Alexis Wulluh-Nakaar, a retired diplomat. Mr Clement Eledi, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, and Mr Godfred Bayong Tangu, Wa Municipal Chief Executive, are the sole candidates for the Wa Central and Wa East constituencies, respectively. Dr Daniel Debagah, Dean of the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies of the University of Development Studies (UDS), would slug it out in the Nadowli North constituency with Wing Commander Eric K. Dakura of the Ghana Air Force and Mr Lawrence Banye, a teacher.

In the Jirapa constituency, Mrs Winifred Dy-Yaka, District Chief Executive for Jirapa/Lambussie, Mr Timothy Dombo, a Public Servant and Mr John Bosco Zuuir, a Retired Banker, have filed to contest at the primaries.

The sources said nomination for the Sissala constituency has been kept on hold for reasons that were yet to be explained. Mr Moses Dani Baah, Deputy Minister of Health is the PNC sitting Member of Parliament for the constituency.

Ghana News Agency learnt that nomination papers of aspiring candidates for the Lambussie constituency had not been received at the time of filing this report.