A Survey conducted at the Okaishie and Makola market centres on Monday, June 23, 2008 by The Heritage newspaper has revealed that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have carried their polarization to those two barometres of markets too: the first is for the NPP, the second is for the NDC. The survey was a quest for an answer to whether market women at Makola and Okaishie were in a mood to vote for the retention of the New Patriotic Party government on December 7 or not. The responses were as instructive as hoped for. Majority of the market women at Makola asserted that the recent economic hardships were blamable on the NPP government, a blame that necessitated a change of the party entrusted with state management. Another popular view, which was actually the presumption underlying the first, was that the high cost of fuel, which had led to increases in the prices of foodstuffs; was as a result of the NPP government’s ineptitude.
The deduction from that analogy by the Makola women was that consumers were not able and willing to buy many of their wares and services because the food price index took too big a chunk from their expendable incomes. This, the sellers said, had plunged them into untold economic hardships.
For some of the market women at Makola, voting on December 7 was not quite a serious matter requiring any serious matter requiring any serious thinking: Moko Aya Ni Moko Aba; that’s all. Just as one of the NPP campaign slogans in year 20000 sought to effect a change because the NDC had been in office for eight years and must have delivered all it was capable of, the Makola sellers asserted, last Monday, that the NPP government had finished serving its term. Eight years is the time allotted every government, Makola women supposed, and so contended that the NPP should make way for a different party to come to power.
Though these women vociferously wanted a change of government, when they were asked whether the Convention People’s Party or any other party than the NDC should be given the chance to show what it had for Ghana, they responded the CPP could not be entrusted with the destiny of the nation. Some averred it would be a waste of time to “offer our precious votes to them.” What that implied, and which was actually said explicitly by many, was that Makola women were generally in ‘love’ with Prof. John Evans Atta Mills.
In all, 116 women were interviewed at the Makola Market. Out of the number, 93, representing 80%, pledged their votes for the NDC. Seventeen (17) women, representing 14%, promised to vote for the NPP, while two (2) women; representing 1.7%, went for the CPP. Four women, who, though, said they would vote, were still undecided on which political party to vote for.
It is interesting to note that, of the 116 women interviewed at Makola, those who voted in the last election were 104. Out of the 104, 87 had voted for the NDC. All the 87 women were going to vote for NDC again this year, according to them. Twenty-three (23) women had voted for the NPP in the last election; however, six (6) of them were not going to vote for the same party again. Four out of the six had shifted to the NDC, one to the CPP and one was not decided on which party to vote for. The situation was quite different at the Okaishie Market. Majority of the women there were willing to endorse the sitting government again. Most of the women at this other market were grateful to the NPP government for initiating such policies as the National Health Insurance Scheme and the Youth Employment Programme.
The most important factor to influence Okaishie petty traders at the next polls is that they can now sell their items freely without anybody disturbing their peace. Those they sharply contrasted with case under the NDC government when their items were whisked away by the notorious ‘Aba ee’ vigilantes. As many as 82 of 110 women interviewed at Okaishie were unflinchingly going to vote for the NPP in the December election. That number equated 74.5%. The NDC polled 21 votes, representing 19%. The remaining seven (7) were undecided.
The Heritage political consultants have described both Makola and Okaishie as two of the most important political barometres of Ghana. The experts note that, about a million traders and other tourists visit Accra from within and outside Ghana Monday through Saturday.Majority of the 1,000,000 people visit Makola and Okaishie. That huge number and the about 3 million Accra residents who regularly go to the two markets engage in socio political intercourse, including discussions of the impending general election.
With their economic power and strength of unity, women at the two markets are seen to be very powerful. Over the years, therefore, they have been able to influence millions of eligible voters within and outside Accra on which political party to vote for and, this year, the trend is most likely to continue. The Makola women trade in general foodstuffs: meat, fish and vegetables, apart from wholesaling and retailing imported foods, clothing and several other wares. Majority of the women here are citizens of Accra.
Similarly, the Okaishie market women sell clothing, stationery, provisions and foodstuffs. What sets the two markets apart is that, while Makola is dominated by Gas, Okaishie is a base of Asantes, Kwahus and other Akans. Some of our analysts maintain that, while it is true both Makola and Okaishie can influence, the former can sway more Gas and other people of like cultures, while Okaishie can only persuade Akans in Accra and the many who come from outside the region. There is no division though between experts over the fact that Accra’s Makola and Okaishie are important indicators, gauges, tests, measurements or form guides to the popularity of competing political parties.
