Politics

Prioritise local devt in manifestos – Osae advises parties

Political parties have been urged to prioritise local level growth and development in their manifestos for the 2020 general election as the nation pushes towards the election of Metropolitan Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs).

They must be interested in local level growth and development rather than allowing their manifestos to be national level focus using the bottom up approach to help them develop credible manifestos since anything that starts from bottom aggregate at the top.

On the pending referendum on the election of MMDCEs, the political parties, including those in Parliament have been encouraged to engage partisan support since the move for Article 243(1) of the 1992 Constitution, which empowers the president to appoint MMDCEs is in Parliament for amendment; and the House is expected to vote on it.

Dr Eric Osae, the Technical Adviser of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, encouraged all political parties to use the bottom up approach to help them develop credible manifestos because anything that starts up from bottom aggregate at top is the best way to go.

 “For amendment to go through, our constitution requires two-thirds majority of Members of Parliament to vote in favour, none of the two political parties in parliament, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) command two-thirds majority.

“We need people to talk to their Members of Parliament to enable them vote massively to approve the article for the president to implicitly give his power to appoint MMDCEs to the citizenry to vote for them,” and appealed to the citizenry to vote massively on December 17, 2019, to elect their assembly and unit committee members and also vote in favour of the referendum on election of MMDCEs.

“Local democracy is one of the best things the nation needs because election of MMDCEs will enhance good governance, rule of law, transparency, probity, accountability and deepen our democratic dispensation and credentials,” Dr Osae assured. -gna.org

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