Ministry targets 50% turnout in District Level Election

The Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development has urged the electorate to fully participate in the upcoming District Level Election on December 19.

“We know the turnout for District Level Elections in the country in previous years has been extremely low but we are targeting at least 50 per cent turnout this time around and we want all, irrespective of party affiliation, to go to the polls in their numbers on the day to cast their ballot,” the sector minister, Dan Botwe, appealed.

Interacting with the executive of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and a cross-section of editors of media houses in Accra last Monday, Mr Botwe said elections at the local level were an integral part of democracy, noting that to further deepen the practice in the country, there was the need for the people to show greater interest in such elections by voting to elect their local representatives to champion their cause.

“We have and continue to do all we can to whip up interest.

We are seeing positive signs at the rural and district levels where the candidates vying to be elected are active and campaigning from house to house but not much of same is being witnessed in the urban areas. 

However, we are optimistic that with the work done so far, the response will be better than in previous election years and that is why we urge all to make some time to show up and vote,” he appealed.

Media support

Mr Botwe also rallied the media to help whip up interest in the elections, saying “we can only count on you to hype the elections because it is a critical national exercise and we must all help to ensure its success”.

He said it was not the best that during the presidential and parliamentary elections, turnout had crossed 70 per cent in many instances but at the district level elections, the turnout kept dropping.

For instance, in 1988, the turnout was a little over 59 per cent but has since dropped to below 40 per cent in the last three to four elections.

Mr Botwe said it was time for Ghanaians to change their perception about the District Level Election and ensure that they took full interest in the exercise to elect persons who would help champion their cause at the local level.

“In the week before the elections, I would want to appeal to the media houses to use their space to help the ministry whip up interest.

I know your medium is very powerful and, therefore, once you make the elections your topic, the people will go and cast their vote.

The Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development Minister also urged chiefs and opinion leaders to join the campaign to encourage their people to vote on the day.

He said assemblymen and women played a key role in resolving pertinent issues within their communities and help to support the work of the traditional rulers, therefore, the exercise must be taken seriously to ensure its success.

Core of Democracy

The Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, also shared some views on the elections, saying that the District Level Election formed the core of the nation’s democracy.

He said many countries whose democracy had thrived was as a result of the success of their local elections, an example the country could emulate.

Mr Nkrumah joined in appealing to the media to help the process through discussions on air and in print to encourage all eligible persons to cast their ballot on the day.

Pledge

The President of the GJA, Albert Dwumfuor, for his part, expressed gratitude to the ministry for recognising the pivotal role of the media when it comes to issues of national concern.

“I can pledge that we will do our part to heighten the awareness creation to encourage more people to vote on the day”, he assured.