Tamale Central by-election: We thank you for deciding not to contest – Asiedu Nketia tells NPP

Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has praised the opposition New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) decision to not run in the Tamale Central by-election.

Following the untimely death of Alhaji Hon. Dr. Murtala Mohammed, the local member of parliament, in the August 6 helicopter crash, the NPP said that it will not run a candidate in the next Tamale Central Parliamentary by-election.

Asiedu Nketia cautioned party members against hurrying to run for office during the last funeral ceremonies of the late Dr. Murtala Mohammed at his Tamale family home on Tuesday, August 12.

He demanded peace and the unbroken performance of the fallen heroes’ funeral rites.

“We thank our brothers in the NPP for declaring that they won’t contest us in Tamale Central. I beg our party members not to rush into contesting the Tamale Central constituency. Let’s stay calm and not disrupt the funeral rites of our fallen heroes,” he stated.

In order to select a replacement for the Tamale Central seat, he stated, the NDC will convene after everything has been resolved.

“The party will meet after the funeral and set timelines to get a replacement for the late Murtala Mohammed,” he said.

Deputy Lands Minister Yussif Sulemana, Deputy Roads Minister Alhassan Suhuyini, Northern Regional Minister Ali Adolf, Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu, Lands and Natural Resources Minister Armah Kofi Buah, Interior Minister Muntaka Mubarak, and Johnson Asiedu Nketia were among the government delegation that attended the funeral services of the deceased Murtala Mohammed.

On Sunday, August 10, the late Dr. Murtala Mohammed and Alhaji Lumina Muniru, the Deputy Director General of the National Security, were laid to rest in Accra.

On Wednesday, August 6, the Tamale Central MP and seven other people on board perished in a military helicopter crash.