Legal scholar and governance expert Professor Kwaku Asare has urged Ghana to build stronger public institutions that guarantee equal access to opportunities, arguing that citizens should not have to rely on personal relationships with politicians for favours.

His comments follow recent remarks by retired Supreme Court judge Justice William Atuguba, who criticised some politicians for staying close to constituents during election campaigns but no longer respond to calls after winning.

Prof. Asare argued that the issue extends beyond personal relationships and reflects a deeper structural weakness in Ghana's governance system.

According to him, the country's institutions have become so dependent on personal influence that many citizens believe success often depends more on political connections than merit.

"It is that our system of governance encourages people to believe that personal access to politicians is necessary for navigating public life," he stated in a Facebook opinion piece posted on Saturday, July 18.

Prof. Asare observed that many aspects of public life appear to hinge on personal relationships, ranging from admissions to educational institutions and employment opportunities to scholarships, public contracts, appointments, transfers, promotions, land allocation and even access to basic public services.

"Too much in our beloved country appears to depend on whom one knows," he stated.

He described such a culture as fertile ground for cronyism and nepotism, saying it promotes what he termed "Familiar Family and Friends Governance".

According to him, when access to opportunities depends on political relationships, citizens naturally invest heavily in cultivating those connections and feel disappointed when politicians become inaccessible after assuming office.

"It also explains the disappointment Justice Atuguba describes. When access to opportunity depends on relationships, people naturally invest heavily in political connections. They expect those connections to remain useful after the election. When the calls are no longer answered, they feel abandoned, used or betrayed," he noted.

Prof. Asare, however, maintained that it was unrealistic to expect elected officials to sustain personal relationships with everyone who supported them during election campaigns.

"But no politician can remain personally close to everyone who supported, advised, defended or befriended them during an election. Campaign coalitions are broad. Government is narrower. New pressures arise, priorities change, and access becomes scarce. That is normal politics," he stated.

Instead, he argued, Ghana should focus on strengthening institutions so that access to public opportunities is determined by transparent rules rather than personal influence.

"We must therefore stop asking politicians to maintain permanent personal relationships with everyone who helped them and start building institutions that make those relationships largely irrelevant."

He stressed that citizens should not require political patrons to obtain employment, secure contracts, gain admission to schools or receive promotions within the public service.

"A citizen should not need to know a minister to secure a job. A business should not need a party connection to win a contract. A student should not need an influential relative to enter a school. A public officer should not need a political patron to receive a promotion," he emphasised.

Drawing on past practices, Prof. Asare recalled a period when university admissions based on A-Level examinations were publicly published, arguing that such systems projected fairness by placing merit ahead of personal influence.

He called for a return to governance anchored on transparent criteria, competitive processes, published outcomes, auditable decisions and effective appeal mechanisms.

"The objective should be a non-connection state: a state in which rules outperform relationships, merit defeats patronage, and institutions deliver what citizens presently seek through personal access."

Prof. Asare concluded that Justice Atuguba's remarks should prompt a broader national conversation about institutional reform rather than political loyalty.

"In a properly functioning state, it should not matter very much whether a politician answers your call. The institution should answer," he stressed.

He added that while politics would always involve personal relationships and changing alliances, constitutional democracy ultimately requires institutions that serve citizens impartially.

"The day it no longer matters whether a politician answers your call will be the day our institutions have finally begun to answer theirs," he stressed.