Retention of Assembly members depends on mutual respect with electorate – Presiding Member

The Presiding Member for the Ablekuma West Munici­pal Assembly in the Greater Accra Region,Emelia Agyemfra­ Donkor, has called for mutual re­spect between Presiding Members and other Assembly members and the electorate they work with.

She noted that respect for each other was important because “if they treated the electorates with dignity and respect, they would also demonstrate respect for As­sembly members by retaining them as Assembly members”.

“The retention of most Assembly members in power is highly dependent on the way you respect and dignify your electorates and colleagues at the Assemblies so we should not disrespect them because we will depend on them for our votes,” Mrs Donkor said.

She made the call at the 2023 Greater Accra Presiding Members two-day conference in Accra which was on the theme: Actualisingen­vironmental sanitation in Greater Accra- The role of Presiding Members’, and among other issues built the capacity of members on functions of Presiding Members and initiatives towards the prog­ress, growth and development of Assemblies.

Mrs Donkor, who is also the treasurer of the Greater Accra Presiding Members Association observed that “if you respect and dignify your beautiful wife, she will respect and dignify you so if you respect and dignify the electorates, they will also respect and dignify you and continue to vote for you and with respect for each other we can avoid conflicts and misgivings among the members and elector­ate.

Baba Seidu, Representative of the Greater Accra Regional Minis­ter, encouraged Presiding Members to continue serving the country loyally, despite challenges the country was going through because they were core players of grass­roots democracy as they presided over law making and implemen­tation at local levels and should be revered for their meaningful contribution towards growth and development.

He lauded the Greater Accra Assemblies for retaining most of their Assembly members and Presiding Members as continuity could enhance progress, growth and development and revealed that the Ashanti, Western and Northern regions were also mak­ing moves to initiate sanitation programmes as sequel to the Regional Minister’s“Operation clean your frontage”.

Samson Akwetey, Representa­tive of the Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, indicated that rapid population growth and urbanisation had contributed to sanitation challenges in cities and urban areas and called on Assem­blies to re-strategise against filth by initiating monitoring measures to arrest people engaged in de­struction of sanitation facilities.