Three individuals have filed to contest the Tamale Central Constituency by-elections scheduled for the 30th of September.

The three are the NDC's Prof Alidu Seidu Mahama, the LPG's Ibrahim Mohammed Hafiz and the PNC's Alidu Mohammed Nasir-deen.

Five people had picked nomination forms, including the APC and an independent candidate, but only these three filed by the close of the day today, which is the final day for filing.

The Tamale Central Constituency became vacant following the death of the constituency's Member of Parliament, Dr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, in a tragic helicopter crash.

Speaking to the media, Tamale Metro EC Director Samson Anaba urged the three to conduct their campaign with decorum to ensure a peaceful election.

The NDC's candidate, Prof Alidu Seidu Mahama, successfully filed his nomination papers this morning at the EC office. He was elected as the party's parliamentary candidate for the by-election, polling 840 votes out of 1,511 valid votes cast.

The NDC candidate, Prof Alidu Seidu Mahama, said the NDC was poised for the elections, noting that he had a solid team, including aspirants who had contested him. He said he had enjoyed support from the constituency to the regional level with mobilisation.

“They have been able to whip up crowds when it matters, and I don’t think this is an exception. Once we hit the ground running with the support of my executives, my ward coordinators, branch executives, and the regional executives, I think we are going to pull all the crowd we need to win this seat,” Prof. Mahama said.

He further said that the 11 aspirants who contested him for the NDC's slot have met with him and pledged their support.

“The 11 aspirants who contested me, I have met them. They all came to my house to congratulate me, and we have all agreed that moving forward, there is no longer a particular candidate faction; we are now a congress,” he said.

Prof Mahama said they had gone through the process successfully and were poised to campaign to win the seat.

He added that they were mindful of the circumstances under which the elections were taking place, and stressed they would conduct their campaign peacefully. He thanked all stakeholders for their cooperation.

The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has withdrawn from the contest and will therefore not field a candidate for the election.