Story: Yaw Takyi

Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin has declared the Kumawu Parliamentary seat vacant following the passing of the late Philip Atta  Basoah   on March 28, 2023.

The 54-year-old late Kumawu MP died at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital after he was found unconscious in his room on Friday, March 24, 2023 and rushed to the hospital for medical attention.

Before Parliament closed for recess on Friday, March 31, 2023,  Speaker Bagbin disclosed that the Electoral Commission (EC) was officially informed about the MP’s death and waiting for the conduct of a bye-election within the next ninety days in accordance with Section 3 of the EC’s Amendment Act 1996 ACT 52.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) eulogized the late Mr. Basoah and said, as “a gentle and astute politician whose contributions to the party, constituents, and the development of Ghana through his work in Parliament cannot be overemphasized.”

Mr Basoah died at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, where he had  been on admission for a serious ailment.

His death was confirmed by the Majority Chief Whip, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, in a tweet on Tuesday morning.

He first came to Parliament in 2017 after winning the 2016 general elections in the Kumawu constituency.

Prior to sailing to Parliament, Mr. Basoah was a Chief Executive for the Sekyere East District from June 2005 to January 2009 and was also a tutor at the Agogo State College.

In the 2016 Ghana general elections, he won the parliamentary seat with 21,794 votes making 78.2% of the total votes cast on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party.

In the 2020 Ghana general elections, he won the parliamentary seat with 14,960 votes making 51.1% of the total votes cast.