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Mr Patrick Baidoo
Mr Patrick Baidoo

Assembly members endorse partisan election of MMDCEs

A section of assembly members in the Greater Accra Region have endorsed the move for assembly elections to be contested along political party lines.

In separate telephone interviews with the Daily Graphic, the assembly members contended that even though by the current practice assembly elections were supposed to be non-partisan, behind the scenes, political parties sponsored some candidates who contested for positions in electoral areas.

Going public on it with the passage of the necessary laws, they said, will help supporters of the various political parties to know who the party supports and for that matter vote for them.

They have, therefore, called on Parliament to hasten the passage of the law that would allow assembly elections in the country to be conducted along political party lines.

The Presiding Member of the Weija Gbawe Municipal Assembly and Assembly Member for the New Gbawe Electoral Area, Mr Patrick Baidoo, said making assembly elections in the country partisan was a laudable idea because presently, political parties found a way to sponsor candidates.

“I can tell you on authority that all assembly members are affiliated to one political party or another so at the assembly level, we even know where each member belongs when it comes to ideologies. So whom are we deceiving?” he stressed.

Increased turnout

He said making assembly elections partisan would increase voter turnout because voters would be tempted to come out in their numbers to vote for a particular person because that person is coming from their political party, adding that it will solve the low voter turnout that characterised the current practice of non-partisan assembly elections.

“We are all contesting along party lines so now let us make it public,” he stressed.

On his part, the Assembly Member for the Weija Electoral Area, Mr Wilfred Ayitey Blankson, said although presently most of them don’t show party logos on their posters, political parties do sponsor assembly members but these are not in the limelight like they do with parliamentary elections.

He stated that organising assembly elections along party lines would help political parties, their members, as well as their executive to know who is representing them at the assembly level and, therefore, elect the right people to represent them.

The Assembly Member for the Ngleshie Amanfro Electoral Area, Mr Kwakye Mensah, stressed that assembly elections had for a long time been partisan, adding that it was about time we went public on that instead of what we are currently doing.

He said making assembly elections partisan would see political parties bear the full cost of the campaign of candidates.When that happens,one can be assured that the best candidates will be elected.

With the current practice, he said the assemblies do not get the best candidates to contest and that defeats the real aim of the assembly work.

District Assembly Elections Act

The District Assembly Elections Act – 1994 (ACT 473) Section three (1) states that no candidate seeking election to a district assembly or any lower local government unit shall present himself to the electorate otherwise than as an individual.

Section Four of the act among others states that no candidate seeking election to a district assembly or any lower local government unit shall use the name, motto or symbol of a political party or organisation and solicit or accept the assistance of a political party in connection with the organisation of district assembly elections.

Section five states that ‘a candidate who contravenes any provision of sections three or four of the Act commits an offence and on conviction shall have his nomination cancelled by the commission.’
Section Seven of the act states that

(1) No political party or organisation shall endorse or sponsor; canvass for votes for; or in any way campaign for or against a candidate seeking election to a district assembly or any lower local government unit.

(2) Any political party or organisation which contravenes subsection (1) of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding five million cedis.

The Electoral Commission (EC) has since released the timetable for this year’s assembly elections scheduled to take place nationwide on December 26, 2019.

The EC, will from October 9 to 10, receive unit committee nomination forms and from November 21 to 25, it would hold an open forum dialogue with candidates at district levels.

Most of the candidates have started campaigning already with posters demonstrating their intention to contest and their vision for their electoral areas.

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