All the parliamentary aspirants seeking to contest the upcoming parliamentary primaries of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Upper West Region have been cleared by a vetting committee of the party.
Although the vetting process was without any major hindrance, it went beyond schedule, compelling the aspirants and their supporters to stay late into the night on April 3, before they could be vetted by the five-member committee.
A total of 30 parliamentary aspirants successfully went through the vetting process at the Wa Technical Institute, paving way for them to contest the May 13 parliamentary primaries of the NDC in the Upper West Region.
The number includes 8 sitting MPs, 4 of whom are first-time MPs. The rest are a former MP and 21 individuals who are either former aspirants or new entrants.
Surprisingly, only one out of the 30 aspirants from the 11 constituencies is a female from the Jirapa constituency.
The Wa Central constituency has the highest number of aspirants, where 3 people are seeking to replace the incumbent, Dr. Rashid Pelpuo in his 5th term bid.
6 constituencies, including Wa East, Wa West, Jirapa, Lambusie, Sissala East and Lawra each have 3 aspirants while the Nadowli-Kaleo, Nandom, Daffiama-Bisie-Issa and Sissala West constituencies each have 2 persons contesting.
The daughter of former IGP, Peter Nanfuri who happens to be the only female aspirant says the Jirapa constituency has not seen proper parliamentary representation in the last four years, hence, her decision to replace the incumbent.
Some of the incumbent Members of Parliament say they have duly represented the party and their constituents in Parliament and will want to be retained.
The incumbent MPs include Dr. Godfred Seidu Jasaw [Wa East], Anthoney Mwinkara Sumah [Nadowli-Kaleo], and Peter Tuobu [Wa West].
Their contenders however say the NDC is gradually losing its dominance in the Upper West Region, a reason the delegates must elect fresh candidates who have what it takes to bring back their lost glory in the region.
The parliamentary hopefuls include Farouk Bandanaa [Wa West], Dr. Titus Bayuo [Lambusie], Mutiu Rahaman [Wa Central].
