What type of govt do we need in future

The basic law of the land is very explicit on how power should be exercised after the conduct of elections.

The Constitution is unambiguous on who forms the government after the Electoral Commission has declared the results of a general election.

A presidential candidate who secures more than 50 per cent of the votes cast in an election is declared the president-elect; while by a simple majority a candidate wins a parliamentary seat.

These arrangements have worked well in our jurisdiction, albeit with a few bottlenecks, until the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the 2012 general election and two others decided to contest the declaration of President John Mahama as President in court.

Elsewhere, there is proportional representation that offers every political party a share of the parliamentary seats and a number of ministerial portfolios, depending on the number of votes it garnered at the polls.

This is not a scenario that Ghana has worked with before but this issue always pops up in discussions to find ways to carry everybody on board in the governance of the country.

However, it is becoming increasingly clear that the politics of winner-takes-all is aggravating the divisions in our society and even for the insignificant ‘spoils’ of election, party loyalty is a critical consideration.

From time immemorial, we have paid lip- service to the public declaration of the intentions of our presidents to run an “all-inclusive government” or be “father for all”, for which reason we have not been able to cement relations between members of the two major political parties.

The Acheampong administration introduced the Union Government concept but the idea did not sit well with many Ghanaians, who rejected it in a referendum on March 30, 1978.

Since that infamous Union Government ‘wahala’, other personalities have ironically tried to suggest to Ghanaians to accept that kind of governance system.

We recall that in 2008, following what happened in Kenya in 2007, the idea of a power-sharing arrangement was suggested here in the event of any challenges afflicting the electoral process.

Here, again, the political class shot down the suggestion and it could not fly, in spite of the close outcome of the polls.

The extreme polarisation in our society has not helped our governments to mobilise the resources of the country to create jobs and wealth.

The consequences of our inaction have been the growing poverty and unemployment levels in our society.

Consequently, many public-spirited people have suggested a departure from the winner-takes-all policy that has alienated about half of the population from the governance of the country.

We cannot blame anybody for the present arrangement, since that is a creature of the Constitution. But we know that the legal framework is not crafted in iron and so now that we have realised the present arrangement is giving us some headache, we can review the law for the good of society.

The Daily Graphic thinks we have a glorious opportunity now to use the review of the Constitution to carry out reforms that will reflect the aspirations and the mood of the people.

Last Thursday, Dr Kwabena Adjei, the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), attributed the tense situation in the country to the winner-takes-all political environment and said from now onwards “let us share. This country belongs to all of us”.

Dr Adjei has been criticised in certain quarters for this comment, but be that as it may, the Daily Graphic thinks the suggestion is worthy of further interrogation to find out whether it can help bring all political forces together for the development of the country.

Daily Graphic/Ghana