Will The Election Of District Assembly Members And District Chief Executives On A Party Basis Ease Political Tension In Ghana?

I stand to be corrected, but a former minister for local government and rural development, Mr. Kwamena Awhoi, has, in the past, made statements, which give one the distinct impression that he feels that it will not benefit Ghana, if district assembly members and district chief executives (DCE) were elected, on a party political basis.

I find that extraordinary. Mr. Kwamena Awhoi, like his other gifted brothers, is a highly intelligent man - who was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University. His view opposing the election of DCE's on a party political basis, is one that I find rather puzzling.

Surely, any member of a political party having to win an election in order to qualify to run a district in Ghana, as a DCE, has incentive enough to work hard to ensure the development of that particular district, and see to it that the overall quality of life of those living in that district improves during his or her tenure - so that he or she will be rewarded with yet another term in office in any subsequent election: by a grateful electorate happy to have local leaders who are actually responsive to their needs?

And would there not be less tension in the country, today, for example, if whiles the ruling party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), manages the nation's affairs at the centre in Accra, in addition to districts it also controlled; the other political parties in Ghana - such as the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Convention People's Party (CPP) and the People's National Convention (PNC) - could also control and run the remaining districts in Ghana, too?

Would that not make them feel that they too had a stake in the nation - instead of the endless frustration felt by opposition politicians under the current system, bred by the present winner-takes-all nature of our nation's politics: which makes them feel so completely shut out of the scheme of things, politically?

Furthermore, far from using their control of district assemblies to undermine ruling parties at the national level, opposition parties would rather turn the districts they control into showcases of good governance and models of excellent stewardship - so that they can point to them as examples of what they can achieve if they were in charge of the presidency and the executive branch of government as a whole, at the national level.

And why would anyone suggest that grassroots people would end up electing mediocre people as assembly members and DCE's - as if they were incapable of assessing the various candidates vying for those positions? It is extraordinary that Mr. Kwamena Awhoi, whose wealth of knowledge and experience of governance at the local level is exceptional, incidentally, is of that view - if I understand his position in this matter correctly.

With so many well-educated young people around to pick and choose from, one doubts very much if political parties would not always field the best qualified individuals, in local elections, for district assemblies and the position of DCE.

Moreover, is democracy not about allowing ordinary people to choose who they want to rule them?  So why should we continue with the hypocritical view that local government in Ghana is not partisan - when we all know that the opposite is true?

If politics at the local level were plural in nature, the competition of ideas, as the various political parties compete for control of district assemblies and the position of DCE, during, and after election campaigns, would change the face of rural Ghana forever - and help bring government to the doorstep of ordinary people, literally, nationwide.

And, above all, for once, in a nation in which virtually the whole of the national cake is invariably grabbed by our educated urban elites, it is what grassroots people want that will be of concern to politicians at the district level - not what will be to the advantage of those in power at the centre.

We must not continue with the present winner-takes-all-system that is the source of most of the tension in Ghanaian politics.

If we take pluralism to the district level, we will breed a new crop of hard-working, dedicated and efficient politicians, who are results-oriented and attune to the needs and concerns of ordinary folk.

(Additionally, at the national level, this pool of new breed of politicians, can be drawn on, for appointment to serve as government ministers - with considerable administrative experience under their belts already.)

And if a by-product of all that is less political tension in our nation, and a further deepening of the roots of Ghanaian democracy, why should we not try it, dear reader?

What have ordinary people got to lose, after all, if that were done, I ask - and what exactly are the members of our political class so frightened of, which, although they are invariably amenable to the idea when in opposition, makes them dead-set against it, once they are in power at the centre, in Accra: our nation's chaotic but vibrant capital?

Finally, dear reader, clearly, if we want to lower tension in Ghana's politics, it is vital that we consider devolving power to district-level elected politicians - using the competitive party-politics model, as the basis for all local elections in Ghana.

One certainly hopes that our hard-of-hearing political class will move to bring plurality to the district-level - for all the tension-reduction reasons, stated copiously above!

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