Former Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu has called for the elimination of the “winner-takes-all” system from Ghana’s political framework.
He believes that this system, which grants the winning party disproportionate control, hinders the development of an inclusive and participatory democracy.
His call for reform follows a stakeholder workshop organised by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, where discussions on potential constitutional amendments were held.
Mr Iddrisu emphasised the need for changes that would foster greater inclusivity and prevent the marginalization of opposition parties.
As the Member of Parliament for Tamale South, he argued that the concentration of political power in the hands of the ruling party weakens the political voice of minority groups.
The former Labour Minister stressed that removing the “winner-takes-all” approach would strengthen Ghana’s democratic institutions by ensuring a more balanced and representative system of governance.
“Winner takes away all, we must do away with that in any future constitution of Ghana so that the country can have a proportional representative government like what pertains in South Africa.”
“It would have also watered down the powers of the president and we must do a cross-jurisdictional study. Kenya has amended to decouple the minister from the MP.”
“What they have observed is that those ministers who are not MPs don’t care more about constituents than those who are MPs who will perform in order to keep their seat.”