"The constituencies can't push all their quality human resources inthe basket of the national parliament to the disadvantage of the localparliament," he said, encouraging them to shift focus to the local assembly level.   

Mr Gunu in an interview with GNA said the primaries deepened the democratic credentials of the Party and that losing a parliamentary primary should not be the end of the road for those who lost, and that they could play meaningful roles in the local assemblies.

He said all contestants signed a declaration prior to their vetting to support whoever was elected the Party's parliamentary candidate for the 2020 general elections and charged both winners and losers to forge ahead as one body for the DLE and general elections in 2020.

 Mr. Gunu, a former District Chief Executive for Akatsi North, also asked that Assembly members be given appreciable remuneration and support to make the position attractive.

 He said many more qualified individuals would have loved to serve in the local assembly "but they are not ready because apart from being called honourable, they do not get anything". 

Mr Gunu was hopeful the election of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives and assembly members on partisan basis would give impetus to the local governance system. 

The parliamentary primaries in the Volta region saw four new entrants in constituencies where incumbent Members of Parliament decided not to contest, with all incumbent MPs contesting retained.  

The new entrants are Professor Margaret Kwaku, Hohoe, Richard Safe, Anlo,  Dzifa Gomashie, Ketu South and Kwame Dzudzorli Gakpey, Keta.