In Ghana, NDC backs government stance against fully partisan elections of local leaders
In Ghana, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has supported the government’s position against fully partisan elections of heads of metropolitan, municipal and district administrations. Rashid Tanko Computer, the NDC’s Deputy Director for Elections and Information Technology, said that, in his view, such an approach could hinder development at the local level, MyJoyOnline reports.
Interaction between local and central authorities
Tanko Computer believes that Ghana’s political culture creates risks if a local administration is headed by a representative of a party that does not control the central government. As an example, he cited the possibility of electing a representative of the New Patriotic Party as head of the administration in Kumasi or Accra under an NDC government.
According to him, under such circumstances, problems may arise with coordination between local and central authorities, which, in the NDC representative’s view, would hinder development. He also said that Ghana should take its own political traditions into account rather than fully adopting the democratic models of Western countries.
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Proposed procedure
The NDC representative defended the government’s proposed procedure for selecting heads of metropolitan, municipal and district administrations. Under this model, five candidates will first be selected and interviewed by the Public Services Commission. Three applicants are expected to advance to the final stage, after which residents of the relevant district will vote for the head.
Tanko Computer stressed that this procedure differs from the current system, under which the President nominates a candidate and members of the local assembly vote on the nomination. According to him, the new mechanism is intended to combine residents’ participation in choosing the head with the need for effective coordination between local and central authorities.
The NDC’s position came after the Ghana Trades Union Congress rejected the government’s proposal, insisting that districts should elect their leaders independently.
