Chiefs says
A member of the National Consultative Assembly that drafted the 1992 constitution, Nai Kwao Otuo V, has appealed to the government take a decision on a proposal that the state should fund political parties.
He described the proposal as laudable and would strengthen the country's democracy.
Nai Otuo said some members of the Assembly mooted out the idea but it was not enshrined in the constitution.
Nai Otuo, the Central Regional Chairman of the Ghana National Association of Farmers and Fishermen (GNAFF), was speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview.
''Judging from the level of understanding, love and desire Ghanaians have developed for democratic governance and the rule of law there is the need for the state to do all it can to strengthen the democratic machinery of the nation to ensure national cohesion and progress'', he said.
Nai Otuo said apart from providing a level playing field for all political groups state funding of political parties would also help minimize campaign malpractices among political parties.
He, however, cautioned that care must be taken so that the system does not create avenue for some opportunists to dupe the nation through the formation of mushroom political groups.
Nai Otuo suggested that the number of political parties to be taken care of financially by the state should be pegged at four in view of the present economic constraints facing the nation.
He supported a suggestion that a new site be secured for the Liberia refugees at Gomoa Budumburam, saying the camp's location near Accra posed a threat to the security of the country.
