IGP grants resignation request of the widow of Mfantseman MP

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), James Oppong-Boanuh, has granted a resignation request by the widow of the murdered Member of Parliament (MP) for Mfantseman Constituency.

Ophelia Hayford who has been settled on by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as a perfect replacement of her husband who was murdered last week by suspected armed robbers was a serving police officer.

Since the laws barred her from engaging in active politics while still in service, she had the option of resigning with her entitlements to be paid to her according to the procedures in the service.

As a result, she is reported to have tendered in her resignation on October 11, 2020, which was granted on October 12, 2020, by the Police Chief according to sources available to MyNewsGh.com.

Many have argued that the decision to force the woman to resign from active policing to become a politician is fundamentally wrong considering the scheme of things.

But General Secretary of the NPP, John Boadu, in justifying why she was chosen, explained that "she knows the constituency very well and considering the large support that the husband had and the kind of difficulties that the constituency is going through, a lot more of the constituents think that we should let the wife continue.”

John Boadu indicated that her name did not receive any form of dissent from Regional, Constituency, and even National Executives.

“There was massive consensus; no dissent at all,” he said adding that “as the backbone of her late husband so she is the right person to continue his good works.”

The party is expected to announce this in the coming days as the wife of the slain MP who is an Assistant Superintendent of Police has resigned from her position to represent her people in Parliament.