A member of the Research and Policy Committee of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Victoria Ametor, has reiterated her party’s commitment to give power back to the people when voted into power in the November 7 polls.
According to her, the essence of every democratic society is to let the people have a say in the running of government.
The PPP research and policy committee member was speaking in an interview with Today on Monday, June 14, 2016 in Accra on her party’s Ten-Point Agenda.
She explained the need to give power to the citizenry which is the second point on the agenda.
According to her, there would be no accountability in the governance of this country, if “we continue as a nation to appoint Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCE’s).”
“Appointment of MMMDCEs will not make them accountable to the people,” she stressed.
It is for this reason, she said, a PPP government will ensure that MMDCEs are elected by the people.
That, Ms. Ametor further explained, will lessen the burden on Members of Parliament (MPs) who are always bothered with problems from their constituents.
She blamed successive governments including the current administration for failing to ensure that MMDCEs are elected, particularly the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) having promised to do that in 2008.
“Both the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the NPP were only paying lip-service to the election of MMDCEs,” she said.
However, Ms. Armah said the failure on their part to do so was an indication that the two parties [NDC and NPP] do not deserve to govern this country.
She refused to accept any excuse from the parties’ failure to implement what she described as an “important constitutional requirement for our democracy.”
To this end, she reassured of the PPP’s commitment to that course, saying “it will bring government close to the door-steps of the people.”
Consequently, she called on Ghanaians to vote for the PPP in the November polls so as to know the ins-and-outs of government when it comes to participatory democracy.