A lot of people and some institutions have expressed concern about the negative consequences of the winner-takes-all practice of governance in Ghana, saying it continued to polarize the society.
People consulted under the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA)-Winner Takes All (WTA) project in all the regions of the country say the WTA practice of governance was not working for Ghanaians and that it was rather impeding development.
Mr Justice Francis Emile Short, Vice Chairman of IEA-WTA Advisory Committee, said at a press conference on Tuesday that the consultation which started in June had recommended a change in a governance system where one political party appoint persons to various positions not thinking about whether such persons could perform efficiently or not.
He said based on the outcome of the consultations various recommendations were made concerning the powers of the executive, the legislature, district level governance, funding of political parties and on national development planning.
Mr Justice Short said during the nationwide public consultations it was confirmed that under the winner-takes-all politics, all public appointments are variably made to benefit party supporters and loyalists to the exclusion of real or perceived political opponents “and in a manner that sometimes undermines meritocracy and weakens institutions.”
The Advisory Committee has therefore recommended that all appointments of heads of the key constitutional bodies and governance institutions like CHRAJ, Electoral Commission, as well as heads like Chief Justice, Supreme Court judges, Governor of Bank of Ghana, and Auditor-General should be made by the president with the approval of two-thirds majority of Parliament.
On the Council of State, the Committee recommended that the President should be limited to appointing three members only instead of 11 members and the remaining eight should be nominated by civil society organizations including religious groups, professional bodies and business groups.
“Alternatively, the Council of state may formerly be reconstituted into a second Chamber of Parliament. This would comprise mainly of technocrats and renowned statesmen and women”.
The Committee said Parliament should also be strengthened to become a more independent legislative body through the cancellation of the current practice of appointing ministers of state from Parliament which further weakens the institution.
“There should be separation of powers. Any Member of Parliament who is appointed a minister should vacate his or her post and allow for bye-elections for another person to come in and work for the people. This would make parliamentarians more loyal to the work at Parliament and not subservient to the President” Mr Justice Short said.
The committee also supported the call for public funding of political parties by the state to ensure a level playing field for political parties and keep the parties active in the inter-election period.
The IEA-WTA Advisory Committee also urged government to accept the Constitutional Review Commission’s (CRC) recommendations on the national development Planning Commission (NDPC) and the need for a national long-term perspective plan.
Mrs Jean Mensa, Executive Director of IEA, said the Committee was yet to meet with President John Mahama who had earlier supported the abolition of winner takes all governance to discuss the recommendations with him and see how they could be considered into the work of the CRC which is yet to be finalized.
She said a few more stakeholders would be engaged to seek their inputs.
“We cannot allow the draft Constitution to be passed into law without addressing and reforming the WTA practice. The time therefore is now. If we fail to act, posterity will judge us. This is not about who is in power or who may be elected to power. It is about Ghana”, Mrs Mensa said.
