New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer hopeful Bryan Acheampong has called out the party’s leadership over its decision not to contest the upcoming by-election in the Tamale Central constituency, slated for September 30, 2025.
Speaking in a video clip from a recent campaign event, Bryan Acheampong, who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Abetifi, asserted that the decision of the Steering Committee of the party to withdraw from the by-election was completely wrong.
He made these remarks while admonishing some members of the party not to choose its flagbearer based on emotions, adding that the party must choose a person who would secure power.
The legislator noted that, unlike the NPP, the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) had decided to contest the Akwatia by-election.
“The NDC always shows us the way – no emotions. We hurriedly decided not to contest in the Tamale Central by-election, but they said they would contest the Akwatia by-election.
“Sometimes we get carried away with emotions when we are to do politics. If it were up to me, I would have contested Tamale. I would have contested Tamale because a by-election is a by-election,” he said in the Twi dialect.
The New Patriotic Party announced on August 11, 2025, that it would not be participating in the upcoming parliamentary by-election for the Tamale Central constituency.
The by-election was necessitated by the tragic death of the Member of Parliament (MP), Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, in a helicopter crash on August 6, 2025, which claimed the lives of eight Ghanaians.
The party stated that its National Steering Committee made the decision to withdraw from the Tamale Central
by-election, a seat held by the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), based on several factors.
One of the reasons was the “belief that it would be inhumane and unconscionable to subject the nation to a competitive process in search of a replacement for the departed MP” and also “to ensure a smooth and peaceful replacement for the good people of Tamale Central,” as a tribute to the departed MP.
