Youth group calls for fresh nominations at KMA
The Asante Youth Association (AYA), a pressure group that seeks the welfare of Asanteman, has called on the two candidates contesting the presiding member (PM) position of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) to step down and allow new people to file their nomination.
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It said the current stalemate at electing the Presiding Member for the assembly was delaying the development of the metropolis and making Kumasi the real losers.
It said the two could not be allowed to hold hostage the development of the metropolis and as such should step down for fresh people to offer themselves for election.
The KMA has on four occasions failed to elect a PM. This is because neither of the two candidates have been able to secure the two-thirds majority required. The two candidates are believed to belong to the New Patriotic Party and the National Democratic Congress.
Nana Kofi Senya, who had served in that position before is believed to an NPP loyalist while Nana Baffuor Agyei Kesse IV, the Adumhene, is believed to have the backing of the NDC loyalists.
The assembly has a total of 137 members with 92 of them elected and 44 government appointees in addition to the Metropolitan Chief Executive.
The last attempt to elect a PM resulted in a fight between an elected Assemblyman and a government appointee. Before then, none of the two candidates was able to get the required votes to become a PM.
Addressing a press conference, the Secretary of AYA, Barima Tweneboa Kodua, said there was an existing convention at the assembly where if the assembly was unable to elect a presiding, the candidates could be petitioned to step down for new candidates to stand for election.
The association thus appealed to the assembly to invoke this convention and compel the two candidates to step down.
“We stress that these new candidates must not in any way make an attempt to hide behind any political group to stall the process as observed currently,” he stated.
The association observed that the two candidates have taken entrenched political positions making it impossible for either of them to get the needed two-third votes required to become the PM.
According to Mr Tweneboa Kodua, the assembly has two weeks within which to comply with its demands and to get the two candidates to step down and that if they fail to comply with the ultimatum, “we will advise ourselves.”
Although he was not emphatic on the next line of action, he hinted of a massive demonstration against the assembly.
The association also accused the 10 Members of Parliament (MPs) who are ex officio members of the assemblies to be unconcerned about the ongoing developments at the assembly.
It said it was high time they broke their silence and make their voices heard on the assembly inability to the elect a PM.
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