The plans of the actor John Dumelo to become an MP representing the Ayawaso West Wuogon constituency in the Greater Accra Region has become a mirage after he was forced to withdraw his nomination from the NDC primary.
After flirting with the run and finally buying the forms, Dumelo has been kicked out of the race for a very simple reason.
The constituency office of the party announced that two candidates, John Dumelo and one other, had withdrawn from the race for ‘personal reasons’.
However, it has emerged that the so-called ‘personal reasons’ is simply because Dumelo doesn’t qualify to stand for the Ayawaso West Wuogon seat.
The opposition NPP had threatened to have Dumelo disqualified since he didn’t meet the eligibility criteria, and thus should not be allowed to stand.
“We have the register for the constituency and I know he is not a member of this constituency. When did he transfer his vote or registered here, the right thing must be done. His constituency is Hohoe, that’s where he votes” an NPP official said.
According to the laws of Ghana, a person is not qualified to run for MP in a constituency unless he is resident in the constituency for which he stands as a candidate for election to Parliament or has resided there, for a total period of not less than five years out of the ten years immediately preceding the election for which he stands or he hails from that constituency.
Dumelo, as mentioned earlier, hails from the Volta Region and votes in Hohoe. He can still stand for MP in Ayawaso West if he meets the five-year residency criteria but it seems he did not meet that and thus had to withdraw his nomination.
A by-election is set to be held for the seat following the death of MP Emmanuel Kyeremanteng Agyarko.
Source: GhanaCelebrities.Com