Mr Freeman Kanton, a Local Government Expert and the Executive Director at Centre for Advancing Rural Opportunity (CARO) is advocating for the participation of political parties in district level elections and governance.
He said allowing political parties to participate in such elections would whip up citizens interest and address issues of low turnout and increase participation in local governance. Mr. Kanton spoke on Info Radio’s Zienyaaye Upper West Show.
He said political parties should choose or elect candidates to represent electoral areas.
“It is good, I clearly also reason with and support that we allow political parties to start participating in local level elections.
The poor or bad voter turnout during assembly member elections or assembly level election is basically due to the visibility, the lack of interest and popularity of the process,” he added.
He mentioned that it is undemocratic for chiefs or people in positions of power to request candidates to withdraw from the race in favor of another candidate.
Mr. Kanton believes that this approach denies the voters the opportunity to choose the best candidate to represent them in the district assembly.
“Those things are undemocratic. We must allow democracy to prevail at the end of the day we should disenfranchise anyone or disqualify anyone of contesting election or standing in to lead his people.
We must frown upon those things because it doesn’t enrich the process in terms of getting the right people and the competent and qualified people to contest,” he observed.