Let’s come clean on making District Assembly election partisan – Dan Botwe

The Minister for Local Government Decentralization and Rural Development, Dan Botwe has called for a discussion on whether to make the District Level Election partisan or not.

Speaking on Morning Starr with Francis Abban Monday, the Minister stated that the nation cannot pretend that the District Level Election is nonpartisan while political parties keep sponsoring candidates.

“You’ve got a superstructure which is partisan and the base is not and for me, there is a disconnect. Because Article 55 makes it clear from the Constitution that Political Parties are not supposed to support, back, or sponsor candidates at the District Levels Elections.

“If they do that they break the law so they don’t do that but we keep on hearing that there is a subtle way in which these things are done. So it brings back the argument that there are ways that it is done. So why don’t we come clean on that,” Mr. Botwe stated.

He continued: “As a nation, we cannot teach our children that we are all breaking the law. Something that we should do and we are not being sincere about it. It doesn’t speak well of us. But we all know that it is an entrenched position that calls for a referendum to amend the Constitution. So maybe after tomorrow, we may have to see whether there is a consensus on this matter. Then we bring it back for serious discussion.”

Meanwhile, he has called on citizens to actively participate in the upcoming district-level elections.

Over 66,000 individuals are competing for assembly and unit committee positions in the upcoming District Level Elections (DLEs) scheduled for December 19, 2023.

Electoral Commission (EC) statistics reveal 18,755 assembly member candidates and 47,502 unit committee member candidates, totaling 66,257 candidates.

The electoral battleground spans 6,215 electoral areas across 216 metropolitan, municipal, and district assemblies (MMDAs).

Of the assembly member candidates, 6,215 will secure positions in accordance with section 5(1)(b) of the Local Government Act, 1993 (Act 462), serving the 216 MMDAs.

Unit committee member elections will see 31,075 out of the 47,502 candidates elected, with each electoral area appointing five-unit committee members as stipulated by the electoral process.