Amakomhene proposed as compromised KMA presiding member

The Amakomhene, Nana Adu Mensah Asare has been proposed to preside over the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) as its new Presiding Member, Graphic Online has gathered.

Assembly Members are to meet on Thursday to endorse or reject his nomination.

The difficulty though is that the chief as of now is not a member of the Assembly as he is neither an elected member nor a government appointee and it is unclear in what capacity he would preside over the 147-member house.

Graphic Online’s sources however indicates that the Amakomhene, a teacher by profession, became the compromised choice after a lengthy close-door meeting last weekend presided over by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the KMA, Mr Godwin Okumah Nyame could not confirm the new development but said, ‘what I can only say is that the election is rescheduled for Thursday, October 13, 2016.”

It would be the seventh meeting and the 10th attempt at electing a presiding member in one year.

The assembly has failed to elect a presiding member following entrenched positions by many elected members believed to be loyal to Nana Kofi Senya and government appointees said to be loyal to the Adumhene, Nana Baffour Agyei Kesse.

But even after both candidates have stepped down to give way to fresh candidates in the persons of Abraham Boadi (Opooman), assemblyman for Nhyiaeso and Michael Adusei Bonsu, assemblyman for Dadiesoaba, the House has been unable to get a clear winner.

The fresh candidates are said to be shadows or replicas of the former candidates. Boadi is alleged to be in the ‘camp’ of Nana Kofi Senya while Bonsu aligned to the Adumhene.

The cracks in the House is said to have even been deepened as epitomised in the last two elections with each failing to secure the two-third majority.

The Asantehene is reported to have been angered by the development and, subsequently, summoned the meeting to broker peace between the two factions.

KMA is running against time to get a presiding member which could warrant the formation of sub-committees to allow for decisions to be made to keep the city alive.

And against the backdrop that it has no substantive CEO after the resignation of Mr Kojo Bonsu, the assembly may miss out on the national budget because the absence of the PM means it cannot present its budget to be factored into the national one.