Index for measuring political office holders' performance outdoored

A new grading system of Ghana’s rulers called the Political Performance Index (PPI) has hit town, courtesy of Africawatch, the pan-African magazine.

The PPI is an extensive, brand-new grading system that covers the President, Ministers of State, and all 230 MPs in Parliament, based on their job performances.

The grading system is based on individual assessments of professional Ghanaians made up of experts in various fields and different political persuasions.

One group was tasked to assess and give percentage marks to the President based on his performance in five areas: foreign policy, economic development, social interventions, political development and national security.

A second group was asked to assess and give percentage marks to all the ministers of state using four pointers: Policy articulation and implementation, managerial and supervision effectiveness, human relations and ethics.

A third group made up of senior parliamentary correspondents from various media outlets and former MPs were asked to assess and give percentage marks to all the 230 MPs based on their performance in the House, using five benchmarks:

(a) Knowledge about lawmaking and the constitution (b) How active they are in legislative business (c) Contribution to parliamentary debates and how their ideas and suggestions reflect society’s needs and interests (d) Tolerance of views divergent to his or her party’s policies and agenda (e) Ethics

None of the individuals knew, and still do not know, the other members of their evaluation groups. These were blind groups. Members operated individually, and thus the aggregate of their views and marks is highly credible.

Africawatch merely put their percentage marks together and struck an average, which then determined the grade that the President, ministers of state, and the MPs got at the end.

It was quite revealing. And it is going to be an annual affair. From now on, Africawatch will publish the Political Performance Index every year for the President, ministers of state, deputy ministers, and all the MPs in parliament.

“Democracy in Ghana will flourish better if the country has a system to fairly assess the performance of its political rulers,” said Mr. Steve Mallory, editor of Africawatch magazine.

Mr. Mallory is confident that this Political Performance Index will enhance democracy, and ensure proper accountability and transparency in the politics of Ghana.

The 2010 Political Performance Index premieres in the October issue of Africawatch, which is out on newsstands all over Ghana.