A founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Dr Kwame Amoako Tuffour is challenging sitting Members of Parliament (MPs) in the Ashanti Region to open themselves up for contest if they trust they have indeed performed.

He is of the view that it is through same means they won their parliamentary primaries and went ahead to win the elections before becoming MPs yet are pushing to be allowed to go unopposed in the party’s April 25 parliamentary primaries.

Speaking on Kumasi-based Fox Fm monitored by MyNewsGh.com, the member of the party’s National Council of Elder asked “if the current MPs never contested others would they have become MPs? Why is it that most of them are running away from competition?”

In his view, if the current MPs have indeed performed as professed, they would be retained by the constituents who first elected them insisting that the decision to allow the sitting lawmakers to be contested is for peace to prevail.

“NPP is a democratic party and not for dictatorship. If my parents supported the party and contributed to its growth like I did and I want to contest as an MP to support why will someone want to stop me?, he quizzed.

The advisor to the President stated “we sacrificed our lives for the party and everybody has a right to stand for an election in the party and be voted for. If you are barring people from contesting, you are preventing them from exercising their constitutional rights. We have to be extremely careful”

It would be recalled that there were reports of plans to ensure that some incumbent MPs go unopposed in the Ashanti Region championed by the Regional Chairman Bernard Antwi Boasiako alias Chairman Wontumi.

This move has been criticized by a section of the party who indicate it may brew voter apathy.