Widow of murdered MP resigns from Police Service to represent Mfantseman

Ophelia Hayford, the wife of murdered Member of Parliament for Mfantseman has tendered in her resignation as an officer of the Ghana Police Service ahead of a likely confirmation as her husband’s replacement on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party in the December polls.

According to the General Secretary of the NPP, John Boadu, Madam Ophelia, who holds the rank of an Assistant Superintendent of the Ghana Police Service, has resigned in order to take up her new role following the murder of her husband and the apparent unanimous endorsement she received from party members and Mfantseman constituents.

"Yes, it is to a large extent true. I have been to the constituency several times and the whole constituency leadership and party members, the regional [Executive] setup and the national [Executive] setup deem it fit that his wife [Ophelia] is the backbone of the husband," Mr Boadu said in a Joynews interview monitored by GhanaWeb.

"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," Mr Boadu added

Speaking further, the NPP General Secretary indicated that there is a massive consensus without any form of descent since the name of the late MP’s wife came up for consideration as a possible replacement of her husband and indicated that the party will formally announce a decision on her nomination later.

Mr Ekow Kwansah Hayford, the incumbent NPP MP of Mfantseman Constituency who was also the party’s candidate for the December 2020 polls, was killed by suspected robbers on Friday, October 9, 2020, when he and his campaign team were attacked on their way from a campaign activity within the constituency.

The MP had filed his nomination with the Electoral Commission a day before his death.

Based on provisions in Section 4 of the Public Elections Regulations 2020, C.I. 127, which states that: “Where at the close of nominations, but before the election, one of the candidates dies, a further period of 10 days shall be allowed for nominations,” the NPP has thus initiated the move to find his replacement.