Ghanians will start electing their Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in 2018.
This was announced by President-Elect, Nana Akufo-Addo in the Central Region.
The election of MMDCEs was one of the promises in the New Patriotic Party’s 2016 manifesto.
The announcement comes after several calls by some Ghanaians for such positions to be put to vote rather than an appointment by the president.
Akufo-Addo, who was addressing the Central Regional House of Chiefs in Cape Coast as part of his ‘Thank you tour’ said he would work closely with chiefs across the country by consulting them in the appointment of new MMDCEs until 2018 when elections should be held to fill the positions.
“In 2018, we are going to move to fully elected District Assembly representations including the choice of the District chief Executive (DCE). It is going to be done by the people of the districts and no longer by the nomination of the President.”
“But between now and then, all appointments to the District Assemblies is going to be by close consultation between my government and you the traditional authorities,” he said.
MMDCEs are currently nominated by the president pursuant to Article 243(1) of the 1992 Constitution and Section 20(1) of the Local Government Act 1993, Act 462. They are also mandated per the law to be approved by majority of members of the assembly.
‘Elected MMDCE’s will ‘sabotage governments’
Although many have argued that electing MMDCEs will help ensure high performance and proper accountability of local assemblies, local government expert, Professor Kwamena Ahwoi in an earlier interview said any such move will deepen disunity at the grassroots.
He said that the “DCEs would like to unseat the government for their party to come to power, [and] it will be difficult for any partisan government to implement its programs through hostile DCEs.”
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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @jnyabor