Five persons, including actor John Dumelo, have picked nomination forms to contest parliamentary primary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the upcoming Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election.

Constituency Chairman of the NDC for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Fred Djabanor, who confirmed the number of candidates who have so far picked nomination forms, told the media that the opposition party would work hard to win the seat.

Aside actor Dumelo, who lives in the constituency and was accused sometime back of ‘stealing’ a V8 Toyota Land Cruiser belonging to the state, the other candidates, who have picked the forms, include Delali Emmanuel Kwasi Brempong, who was the party’s 2016 parliamentary candidate for the Constituency, John Acquah and one Ewoenam.

The by-election in Ayawaso West Wuogon became necessary following the death of New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for the Constituency, Emmanuel Kyeremanteng Agyarko, who passed on in the United States on November 21, 2018 from gallbladder infection.

There had been mad rush for the seat from both the NDC and NPP, as various candidates laced their boots to represent the two parties respectively during the by-election scheduled for January 19, 2019.

The late Member of Parliament, whose mortal remains arrived in Ghana on Tuesday, December 18, 2018, is to be buried on January 26, 2019.

On the NPP’s side, there have been speculations that the two wives of the late MP- Naana Agyarko and Lydia Alhassan, as well as one of the sons of former President John Agyekum Kufuor, Edward, are interested in contesting the by-election on the ticket of the NPP.

The two wives, however, denied that they were lacing their boots for the NPP parliamentary primary for the constituency, as the party itself had clearly indicated that it wanted a consensus candidate to represent it in the area.

Filing fee, deadline

The NDC MP for Kunbungu, Ras Mubarak had earlier urged his party not to field a candidate in the by-election and allow the NPP to find a replacement for the late MP.

The NDC has set GH¢1,000 and GH¢10,000 as nomination and filing fees, with a 50 per cent discount on the filing fees for women and persons with disability, the paper has gathered.

It has also set Saturday, December 22, 2018 as the deadline for the filing of nominations, with vetting of aspirants expected to take place on Sunday, December 23, 2018.

DAILY GUIDE is informed that the NDC parliamentary primary is expected to take place on Friday, 28 December, 2018.