NCCE urges electorate to turn out for District Level Elections
The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has called on eligible Ghanaians to go out in their numbers and vote in the District Level Elections (DLE) scheduled for Tuesday, December 19, this year.
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The Chairperson of the Commission, Kathleen Addy, who made the call, said Ghanaians must take a keen interest in the DLE because assembly members played a crucial role in their communities for effective governance at the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).
"We need a vibrant local government system that will provide a solid foundation for national development, and that is why we call on all Ghanaians to go out and vote for the best people to lead at the local level.
We need to prioritise this local level election because it is important to ensure that our democracy works well," she said.
Ms Addy made the call at a media engagement held in Accra yesterday yesterday to provide updates on the level of sensitisation ahead of the elections.
Context
The DLE is meant to elect assembly members and unit committee members at designated electoral areas at MMDAs.
The election is in accordance with the Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 462), which provides for the election of assembly members to MMDAs.
Section 5(3) of Act 462 states: “Elections to a district assembly shall be held once every four years, at least six months before or after a general election of Members of Parliament."
Section 6(1) of Act 462 also provides that for a person to qualify to be elected as a member of a district assembly, the person must be a citizen of Ghana above 18 years, a registered voter, ordinarily resident in the district they are seeking election, and also be a taxpayer.
The assembly members are to serve as the representatives of the communities while the unit committee members also help in mobilisation at the community level.
Over the years, the DLE has been characterised by low patronage, with a national average turnout of 30 per cent.
Low turn-out
Ms Addy described the low turnout as "worrying and unacceptable" because it denied local communities quality leaders that could make positive change.
"Members of Parliament live and work in Accra; the President's office is in Accra; but the assembly and unit committee members live with us in the community and help to address our daily development challenges," she said.
She said as part of measures to whip up interest in the DLE, the NCCE had deployed its 1,700 staff to all parts of the country to sensitise members of the public to the need to partake in the elections.
Again, she said the Commission had produced jingles in 17 different Ghanaian languages targeted at creating awareness of the upcoming election.
She also said the NCCE was collaborating with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders to mount platforms for candidates contesting the elections to present their manifesto to the voters.
"We are beginning to see growing awareness level in the election and we will sustain it to ensure that more people participate in the election, which is just one week away," she said.
Election of MMDCEs
Touching on how to deepen governance at the local level going forward, she said the time had come for Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) to be elected.
In her view, electing the MMDCEs would not only help to whip up interest in local level elections but also ensure accountability in governance.
"It is when we elect the MMDCEs that we can hold them accountable for their stewardship just like we do for MPs and the president," she said.
