The Director of Communications for the governing NPP, Yaw Buaben Asamoa has charged Assembly Members to first enter into mutual agreements with the various nominees before the approval date.

Speaking at a press conference in Accra on Friday, September 24, he explained that Assembly Members must appreciate the policy implementation style of the nominees to determine the approval process.

“I urge all Assembly Members to engage nominees and establish lines of mutual agreement towards formal approval before the approval date. The engagement should focus on the basis of the nominee’s manifestoes, their intentions and what they intend to do, thus their plans. It is that, that would convince the Assembly Members to come on board,” Mr Asamoa added

The former Adentan MP observed that since the Assembly Elections are supposed to be non-partisan, 100% approvals are in order and very possible.

Mr Asamoa explained that the governing NPP is in support of the election of Metropolitan, Municipal and District assembly elections on partisan lines.

The NPP had promised to make the exercise contestable in the lead up to the 2020 elections, however, a planned referendum in 2019 to make it a reality was aborted after the opposition NDC objected it.

The NDC national leadership refused to play ball, whilst its Parliamentary Caucus had been working closely with the NPP to amend articles 243 and 55(3).

Mr Asamoa said this intent by the NPP government, if supported, will help break the syndrome of winner takes all once and for all and thereby stabilise the practice of liberal multi-choice democracy in Ghana.

The NPP Director of Communications explained that apart from the onerous burden on the President to find and appoint MMDCEs, there is also the question of tensions at the operational level.

He stated that voters prefer to pass their development claims and local needs through MPs, who then struggle to influence development choices and facilitate individual needs through non-partisan assemblies.

“The NPP will continue to engage in order to deliver the best possible outcomes for governance in order to ensure a credible place for Ghana in the comity of nations as we fight for prosperity, security and stability,” he noted.