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The President will, therefore, more than necessary need the total support and collaborative effort from all his nominees to get Ghana working for her people.
The President will, therefore, more than necessary need the total support and collaborative effort from all his nominees to get Ghana working for her people.

Matters of good governance and jostling for MMDCEs

One of the pillars of the country’s democratic governance is  the creation of the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs). As an important state institution under this current Fourth Republican dispensation, their functions and roles in the good governance process cannot be questioned or underestimated.

Underway is the jostling for endorsement as Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) for the 216 MMDAs. Weeks leading up to the announcement of the President’s nominees for the MMDCE positions, some supporters of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) had protested against some speculated choice of a chief executive they claimed they could not work with.

Jostle for positions

Now that the jostling for political positions is almost over with the President hinting  that all appointments will cease by end of May, the foremost reason for occupying such political office is for the appointees to serve the national good.

Appointed to serve the nation as the chief representatives of the central government  and chief executives of the respective assemblies, a lot is expected of the MMDCEs to address the huge development challenges that confront the nation.

Development gaps

The country is faced with many development gaps, including infrastructure deficits, poor road networks and drainage systems. In this era of modernity, the nation is still constructing open drains instead of covered storm drains, and all these must be of serious concern to our politicians, particularly the MMDCEs.

In the light of this, the endorsement of the MMDCEs cannot be taken lightly because they are at the base of local governance where there are multiple development and social challenges, including access to good medical care, education, water, roads, housing, issues of sanitation, food and security, reliable energy supply and general good governance at the local level. These are basic needs which the country is woefully failing to deliver.

Role of MMDCEs

It is, therefore, important that highly competent persons are endorsed to man the 216 MMDAs for accelerated national progress and development to the satisfaction of the people at the grass-roots level.

Clearly, the role of the MMDCEs at the micro level cannot be underestimated.  This is because good governance is not only attained at the macro level but more importantly at the micro level where the bulk of the citizens reside and are faced with everyday life-threatening challenges.

No wonder the rural-urban drift is becoming so alarming and can easily be  felt on our streets in the capital which has been turned into markets and hawking areas with no solution in sight.

This is where the MMDCEs must show innovation in their respective jurisdictions and work to improve the living conditions of their people.

Political colourisation

For the NPP to succeed in the discharge of its mandate and responsibility towards the citizenry, the MMDCEs must inspire a new era of rapid development across the country.

One of the banes of the country’s snail-paced development can be attributed to political colourisation.

There should be no political colourisation when it comes to national issues and development. After all, politics is essentially to serve the people’s interests first and foremost.

The NPP got the people’s mandate to govern the affairs of the state during electioneering last year. Since the party assumed the reins of government on January 7, 2017, expectations have been so high based on the multiple promises made by the party during the 2016 campaign. Intriguingly, the expectations are coming from all facets of the society, including the unemployed, employed, those in the diaspora, donor partners, lovers and students of democracy and good governance in general.

With five months down the line in government, all eyes are, therefore, focused on the party as it churns out practical policies and measures to meet the wide range of diverse expectations.

Fortunately, the NPP’s support is yet  not lukewarm and the party  is swimming along with a load of goodwill across the length and breadth of the country, and working hard to maintain and sustain this goodwill is what must remain the party’s focus and interest.

By so doing, hopefully, by the end of their four-year mandate, the NPP would have met the expectations of the majority.

This definitely will not come easy and cheap but will demand nothing short of working for the interest of the nation first and all other interests secondary.

This is not the time for party making, if the President’s numerous promises to the nation are to be attained. Foremost on my mind is the fact that the President wants to make the country clean and globally competitive.

The President will, therefore, more than necessary need the total support and collaborative effort from all his nominees to get Ghana working for her people.

 

For now, it is critical for the nation and its political actors to do everything possible to eschew partisan politics, focus more on development issues and together build a prosperous and happy nation as well as  move the country forward. 

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