Former Minister of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah, has questioned the fairness of the government’s proposed modalities for electing Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), arguing that the process could exclude qualified Ghanaians who do not belong to the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).

In a Facebook post on Friday, Mr Korsah criticised the proposal for political authorities to nominate five candidates, from whom three would be shortlisted to contest the election.

He described the arrangement as inconsistent with the idea of a competitive and non-partisan local governance system.

“How can it be called a competitive national election when it potentially excludes your political opponents?” he questioned.

According to the former minister, the proposed model could prevent individuals who are not members of the governing party or do not share its political views from participating in the process.

“At least an outright partisan sponsorship by political parties would have guaranteed opportunity for all sides of the political divide to participate in the elections, with whatever the outcome, to deepen our decentralisation and democracy,” he stated.

He added that the current proposal could “exclude other Ghanaians who do not share in the NDC party and government’s beliefs or are not card-bearing members from being nominated.”

Mr Korsah argued that many Ghanaians expected the reforms to introduce a truly independent system for electing MMDCEs rather than one that continues to give political authorities control over the selection of candidates.

“Ghanaians had wished for a true and proper independent election without having to shortlist three party people and vote from,” he said.

He maintained that the proposed system does not represent a significant change from the existing arrangement, where MMDCEs are appointed by the President with approval from their respective assemblies.

“In principle and substance, it is no different from the status quo that we seek to depart from as a country,” he stated.

Mr Korsah, who served under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, said a future NPP government would review the framework if the party returns to power.

“The next NPP government from 2029 would restore a true and proper concept of an election of MMDCEs in our country,” he added.

READ:

Sedina Tamakloe’s appeal took over two years – Lawyer (Audio)

Obiri Boahen punches holes into gov’t’s position on Constitutional Review Committee’s…