Party politics crippling development at the district level – Assembly Member

Mr Isaac Newton Tetteh, the Assemblyman for the Nmlitsakpo Electoral Area in the Kpone-Katamanso Municipality of the Greater Accra Region, Thursday said party politics at some of the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) is crippling development at the local level.

“The situation must be tackled with all seriousness and urgently, because it has resulted in difficulties of some assemblies nationwide to elect a presiding member, hold sub-committee meetings, as well as hold their first quarter general assembly meetings to discuss developmental issues,” he said.

Mr Tetteh told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview that the impact of the challenge was not directly on the Assembly but rather on the residents being represented, and it was about time the situation was managed to prevent robbing Ghanaians of their share of the national cake. 

He said most of the assemblies, which had been able to elect a presiding member, struggled more than twice; “For example, if you take an assembly like Kpone-Katamanso, we have to go for about four rounds before we were able to get a presiding member.”

Due to party politics Ashaiman, Ningo-Prampram, Tema West, Ada East, Ada West, and many others had been successful in electing a presiding member only after several weeks of their inauguration, he noted.

Mr Tetteh called for the rehabilitation of the poor roads and streetlights to aid socio-economic activities.

“This is an election year, and events will be unfolding here and there. As local authorities who are supposed to oversee local development, we are not seeing anything, and the assemblies are comfortably sitting,” he said.

Source: GNA