Members of Wa East District Assembly at the weekend failed to confirm President John Dramani Mahama’s nominee as a district chief executive (DCE).

Mr Abdul Karimu Abudu polled 20 votes, short of three votes to make the two-third of the 34- member house required to confirm him. Fourteen people voted against him.

The district, considered as one of the most under-developed in Ghana has been without a district chief executive for the past year and that had affected development in the area.

Dr Ephraim Avea Nsor, Upper West Regional Minister, said he expected the assembly members not to endorse Mr Abudu because “my first experience with this assembly was when it failed to elect a presiding member”.

He however described their action as a democratic right and no assembly member should be blamed for exercising his or her democratic rights.

“We will go back and do our groundwork and I will also have to talk to the Member of Parliament, Mr. Aminu Salifu and others.

“Perhaps the issue should not be about interests of the few, but what they must understand is about the development of the district and the people, and this should not be overlooked,” he said.

Some of the assembly members who spoke to Ghana News Agency said the people in the district are using their ethnic diversity negatively to the detriment of development.

Others also blamed some regional executives of the National Democratic Congress for influencing some of the assembly members against the nominee.