A Political Scientist at the University of Ghana, Dr Kwame Asah Asante, has urged Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) who are unhappy with the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) decision to go to court for redress.
The party has forbidden MMDCEs from contesting in upcoming parliamentary primaries where there are sitting Members of Parliament, and Dr Asante believes that this directive may not be grounded in the party’s constitution.
In a statement, the NPP announced that they will hold parliamentary candidate elections in February next year for constituencies where the party has sitting MPs.
However, they made it clear that MMDCEs are not eligible to contest in such constituencies, and constituency executives who want to contest must resign from their current positions.
This decision has left some MMDCEs feeling cheated and angered by their own party. They argue that they do not understand why they have been barred from the contest while Chief Executives of other institutions have been exempted from such restrictions.
Speaking on Burning Issues on Adom FM with Akua Boakyewaa Yiadom, Dr Asante emphasised that if the party’s directive is indeed not in accordance with its constitution, affected MMDCEs should consider seeking legal recourse to have the decision reversed.
He stated: “If indeed the directive by the party is not in their own constitution, if I were them, I would have gone to court so the court can help reverse the decision of the party because this is not right.”
He also suggested that if MMDCEs are reluctant to pursue a court action, they should engage in discussions with party leaders to find a better way to resolve the matter.
He emphasised that MMDCEs have their supporters who may not be pleased with the directive, and the party should listen to their concerns to avoid causing confusion within the party.
“The party should know that Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives have supporters who may not be happy with the directive, they need to listen to concerns that will be raised by the MMDCEs; if not, they are calling for confusion in the party,” he added.
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