The People of Nandom Deserve a Constituency

Decentralized planning and governance aims to promote rapid development by transferring governance from the centre to the periphery. This has underpinned the creation of regions, districts and constituencies in Ghana over the period. It is therefore heartwarming that the current government and the Electoral Commission (EC) has continued to deepen decentralized governance and democracy by creating additional districts and constituencies in response to the needs of our current times.

It was therefore highly appreciated when government announced the creation of 42 new districts including Nandom followed by the EC indicating its intentions to create 45 additional constituencies in response to the 2010 population census across the country.

In a fledgling democracy it is understandable that the creation of districts and constituencies will come about with their challenges and the expected way forward is for all meaning stakeholders especially political parties and their actors (Parliamentarians, party executives) to support such creations in a positive and constructive way. The posture and maneuvers of the largest opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and its agents particularly some of their Members of Parliament (MPs) in suing both government and the electoral commission among other machinations against the creation of districts and constituencies respectively is to say the least undesirable. Among other things, the NPP claims “the additional districts and constituencies are simply a means of gaining undue political advantage for the ruling NDC”.

Nandom is one such newly created district and is expecting to become one of the new constituencies soon. Over the past decades, all shades of well meaning individuals, groups and Nandome from within and without have fought for both a district and a constituency many times in various governments. Instances abound since 1988 till date where frantic efforts have been made till the last failed effort leading to the 2008 elections.

It is with the above background that all Nandom citizens are at a loss that at this crucial time of realizing the long held dreams of a district and a constituency, our MP-Hon. Ambrose Dery and some well meaning Nandom elites who previously and over the years championed the district and constituency crusade are so silent and their voices all of a sudden cannot be heard to ensure that the diabolic plans of the NPP in preventing Nandom and other areas from becoming constituencies does not materialise. This is more paradoxical as our MP, Hon. Ambrose Dery is a senior legal luminary in the NPP and champions most legal crusades of the NPP.

Despite numerous complaints by the masses of Nandom and other areas against the stalling of new constituencies by the NPP and the likes of Hon. Ambrose Dery, this piece is meant to formally serve notice and bring to the attention of such unpatriotic citizens, that the people of Nandom especially the youth are watching and will demand accountability from our leaders and representatives at the appropriate time. In the meantime, we expect to hear a LOUD and CLEAR position of our beloved Hon. Ambrose Dery on his principled position on Nandom becoming a district and more importantly a constituency.

Long Live Nandom, and Long live Ghana

Source: Remengius Dery, for and on behalf of the people of Nandom