A Democratic and Political Tragedy

President Akufo-Addo this evening announced that he has ordered his Minister for Local Government to withdraw all processes leading to the election of MMDCEs, on a political basis. This in effect brings down the curtain on the processes to make our MMDCE’s elective, and on a political basis.

If the referendum, and its accompanying amendments in parliament, had taken place, it would have ceded (taken away) the power to select/elect MMDCEs from the President, to the people, firstly, and secondly, the people would have been given the full gamut of choices. This would have been a great step ahead in our journey to establish a full democracy.

If our democracy, which allows for the election of the President and parliamentarians on party lines, is beneficial at the national level, then it would have been much more beneficial at the local government level.

Sadly, the NDC, supported by some misguided leading members of our Ghanaian community, decided that it would push for a ‘No’ vote. This is of course, not surprising, given the ‘partisanship’ that has taken over politicking in this country, the same partisanship that would lead the NDC to say that it is too evil to participate in local government elections, the same partisanship that led Mr. John Mahama to withdraw critical support for a policy that would bring full choice to the man and woman at Bole to elect their DCE, and to have the fullest choice available in the election of that DCE.

This is a truly sad evening for this country. Sadly, not many people would realize the enormity of what has happened, the grievous loss that has been occasioned to this country and its people.

Will another political party ever promise to allow MMDCEs to be elected again?
Will another President ever push for the election of MMDCEs again to this level?
And would we see this amendment again in our lifetime?

This is indeed a sad day. I congratulate President Akufo Addo, and all those who patriotically pushed for the amendments. In that these patriots have been betrayed, the future will confirm.

The ‘NO’ campaigners have indeed engineered a major democratic and political tragedy for our country, and yet they may not even have the eyes to see the harm they have caused.

Anytime in the future, when you complain about standards of development at the local level, and yet look around and cannot find anyone to hold accountable, know that you were given the opportunity to elect your MMDCEs, that the full choice available in the panoply was given to you, and that you rejected it.

You love to be governed by dictatorship and unaccountable political might at the local level. You cannot see a good thing in your life, even when it is staring you in the face.

As a friend would say, this is a sad ‘distin’, my fellow Ghanaians!

God bless our nation Ghana.
Good evening, and good night.

By Kenneth Kuranchie