The presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress, (NDC), Mr John Dramani Mahama, on Thursday visited the family of the deceased Member of Parliament for Mfantsiman to console them.

Mr Mahama, who condemned the killing of the MP, expressed the hope that the killers would be apprehended and be made to face the full rigours of the law.

The MP for Mfantsiman, Mr Ekow Kwansah Hayford, was shot dead by unknown gunmen on the Abeadze Dominase–Abeadze Duadzi–Mankessim road last Friday night.

He was returning from a campaign trip with some constituency executives of the ruling party when armed men reportedly stopped the vehicle on which they were travelling at a road block the robbers had mounted and shot him, killing him on the spot.

Paying tribute to the deceased MP, Mr Mahama said even though they belong to different political parties, they share common humanity and are all working in the interest of Ghana.

"We therefore want to express our condolences to the bereaved family and it is an occasion for sadness. It is also a call to us as leaders to make sure that our people are safer", he said.

Mr Mahama backed the calls for MPs to be provided with armed guards for their protection, while the government works towards making the country safer for all Ghanaians.

For his part, the head of family of the late MP, Nana Kojo Nkrumah, expressed the hope that ongoing investigations into the death of their relative will uncover those behind the crime.

He also urged the government to help fight the rising incidence of crime in the country.