John Boadu leads NPP campaign for yes vote in referendum

The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), John Boadu, has embarked on a nationwide tour to, among other things, rally party executives in all 16 regions and the 275 constituencies to actively participate in the campaign for an overwhelming “YES Vote” in the upcoming referendum on the election of metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs).

He is urging the executives of the party across the various levels and, indeed, all Ghanaians, to see this referendum as a very crucial political exercise, not only for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), but also for Ghana as a country, and therefore, should be approached with all the seriousness it deserves.

Speaking to party executives at an orientation workshop for all constituency executives in the Western North Region on Thursday, October 31, 2019, John Boadu reminded them of the importance of this referendum and why it must return a YES verdict, noting that, “the success of this referendum would mean a fulfilment of one of our key manifesto promises, and more importantly, something that would strengthen local governance to advance the cause of national development and prosperity.”

He bemoaned the apparent lack of enthusiasm shown towards the exercise, and intimated that for the referendum to pass, the huge constitutional threshold of at least 40% turn out and 75% “Yes Vote” must be met.

The nation is expected to hold a referendum on December 17, 2019 for the amendment of Article 55(3) of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution to allow political parties to sponsor candidates for elections to any public office, including district assemblies or lower local government units. According to the NPP chief scribe, in view of the steps being taken by the government by the date of the referendum Parliament would have finished amending Article 243(1) to take away the President’s power of appointing MMDCEs.

Hence, the referendum, John Boadu said, is ONLY meant to decide whether or not political parties be allowed to sponsor candidates to contest for elections as Assembly Members or MMDCEs, and NOT whether or not the appointment of MMDCEs should be done by the President, pursuant to Article 243(1), which would have been amended by Parliament because it is a non-entrenched provision unlike 55(3).

The NPP, led by John Boadu, is holding a training and orientation workshop for all the 17 constituency executives of the party in all the constituencies in the respective regions of the country to adequately prepare them for election 2020, during which workshop the party is educating the executives on why they should get involved in the campaign for a “YES Vote” in the upcoming referendum.

This exercise has already been held for all constituency executives in the Ahafo, Greater Accra and Western regions. The Western and Western North training workshop for the party executives was facilitated by John Boadu, Peter Mac Manu, Sammi Awuku, Evans Nimako, Yaw Preko and Kokofu. The other regions would soon have their turn in the coming days and weeks.