The Ministry of Information in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development has held it maiden joint town hall meeting at the Tema Metropolitan Assembly.
The event which will be held across all the 216 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies across the country is aimed at depeening the governance system at the local level where the locals are factored into the decision making processes.
Speaking at the Event, the Local Government Minister Hajia Alima noted that the event is highly supported by her outfit and called on all MMDA’s nationwide to ensure active participation in the process.
“This programme is highly supported by my Ministry and I urge all MMDA’s to be involved at every process of this townhall meetings at their various localities”
She said the Assembly’s must include key issues discussed at the meetings on their agenda.
The Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid who launched the 2017 town hall meeting programme said ” the governance process should be a daily process hence the need to involve all stakeholders at all levels on different platforms. We have various levels of engagements where government engages with the Ghanaian citizenry for policy direction and the townhall meeting is one of such platforms where views are taken from the ordinary people.”
He added that the era where government waits till election time to communicate its plans are over but the Nana Addo administration seek to involve and engage the ordinary Ghanaian at every stage of it governance process.
He said the exercise will be replicated in all two hundred and sixteen Assemblies nationwide.
The Metropolitan Chief Executive of Tema, Felix Mensah-La also noted that the Assembly will take steps to ensure that the concerns, suggestions as well as criticisms raised by the people of Tema are looked into for possible redress to improve the lives of the people of Tema.
In attendance were Members of Parliament for the three constituencies in Tema, Titus Glover, Kofi Brako and Carlos Ahinkora.
The citizenry however took turns to ask their questions, criticised when necessary and offered the Assembly some suggestions at the event.
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By: Elvis Washington/citifmonline.com/Ghana