By Emmanuel Oti Acheampong
The District Level Election comes off on Tuesday, December 19, 2023 with the portfolios for Assembly members and Unit Committee up for grabs.
The elections form the basics of Ghana’s democratic participation of all people. It allows the inclusion of residents of an electoral area to select their agents of communal change and development.
The Ga-West Municipal Assembly is the third largest Municipal Assembly in the Greater Accra Region. It is populated with people from different kinds of occupational backgrounds migrating from densely packed towns and cities within the capital.
The Municipal Assembly has 17 electoral areas to its credit, has various police stations and posts and is blessed with educational facilities at almost every electoral area. It also has at its center one of the busiest administrative offices in the Amasaman.
With the district-level election fast approaching, the municipal assembly will be one to be watched as the outcome of the election will directly determine the pace of development and social inclusion in the capital, Accra.
A visit to the Municipal office of the Electoral Commission at Amasaman revealed readiness of the E.C to ensure a free and fair election of Assembly Members and Unit Committee Members.
According to the Municipal Director of the Electoral Commission, Michael Boamah, this year’s election has seen more youthful participation in all the portfolios as compared to that of 2019.
He mentioned that the Unit Commit level of participation has seen an increase in women this year as compared to previous elections. He revealed that the Manhean Electoral Area leads the 17 electoral areas with the highest number bids for the Unit Committee portfolios.
In all 68 people filed to contest in the Assembly Member portfolio with 61 males and 7 females while 213 people filed for the Unit Committee portfolio with 179 Males and 34 Females.
In response to the reason for the low female representation in the Assembly member portfolio, Mr. Boamah opined that, male dominance of our political culture over the years may be a contributing factor and also lack of interest from the women in the Assembly member position accounts or that.
He added that the women like to participate more in the Unit Committee level as compared to that of the Assembly Member position and that has also accounted for the numbers.
Mr. Boamah further expressed hope for a higher voter turnout across all the electoral areas within his catchment this year due to the reports of rigorous campaigns being undertaken by the candidates which is also dominated by the youth.
