Actor-turned-politician Fred Nuamah says he will not step down from contesting in the upcoming NDC parliamentary primaries in the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency despite John Dumelo's candidature in the race.

Speaking to Graphic Showbiz, he said that he was taken aback by his colleague, John Dumelo’s declaration to contest once again after previous assurances that he would not.

Mr Nuamah explained that the 2020 NDC Parliamentary candidate for Ayawaso West Wuogon had informed him and others that he would no longer contest for a parliamentary seat in the Greater Accra Region.

“Truthfully, I am surprised about his U-turn because it was evident and crystal clear that he was not going for the Ayawaso seat anymore and rather invested in Guan/SALL. Frankly, it's late to step down...He gave me his blessings when I made up my mind to contest,” he added.

Mr Nuamah said that “I would have rather expected him to honour his word when he said he won't contest the seat and, therefore, throw his support behind me.”

This comes after Ghanaians were taken aback by the news that Fred Nuamah and John Dumelo would be battling for the NDC parliamentary candidacy for Ayawaso West Wuogon ahead of the 2024 general election.

Although they will be contesting for the same position, in the same party, and at the same constituency (Ayawaso West Wuogon), John and Fred are good friends; Fred was actually John’s best man at his wedding in 2019. 

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In the 2020 election, John Dumelo vied for the constituency seat on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) but lost to the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Lydia Seyram Alhassan.

He polled 37,778 votes against the incumbent, New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Lydia Seyram Alhassan’s 39,851 votes, offering hope for a good chance to probably win the slot at the next general election in 2024.

Although Fred Nuamah announced his intention first, many have advised him to step down for John Dumelo.

However, Mr Nuamah noted that contrary to popular belief, he did not make his political ambitions known to purposely fight John Dumelo. 

He added that Mr Dumelo's great showing against the NPP’s Lydia Alhassan in 2020 is not a good enough reason for him to back out.

“We have even won the presidential votes in Ayawaso before. We always come close to winning the parliamentary; we only lose it by some small margins. So, all the previous candidates, including John Dumelo, did well, but the ultimate is to win and not close a gap or place second.”

He added that “the argument that my brother made history for the NDC doesn’t hold for me. Our party has been performing quite well in that constituency in previous elections before he contested in the last election.”

The actor said that he is quite prepared for the primaries, saying that he has been nursing his political ambition for the last decade.