Having Many Political Parties Reduces Political Contest To Personalities Not Ideas — Majority Leader

The Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Member of Parliament for the Suame Constituency, Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, has emphasized the need for countries, especially Ghana to practice the minimalist approach in our electoral system so that electorates can focus more on ideas and not personalities.

He said the time has come for Ghana to embrace what he calls “minimalism” in our electoral system to be able to cut down the number of political parties that participate in elections.

This, he said would help electorates to vote on the basis of ideas and not just on personalities.

“We’re all center party imposed by the constitution. So, why do we need so many political parties when some of them are singing the same tune? In that event, it reduces the contest to personalities, not to ideas”. he said.

Citing an incident that took place in a family meeting during the 1992 elections, where a cousin of the minister (Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu), suggested they voted for former President Rawlings because of his looks and personality.

The family, he recalled, were talking about which party was offering the best prospects of governance, and his cousin’s only intervention was to suggest they all vote for Rawlings against Adu Boahen because Rawlings was handsome.

Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu said this during an engagement between the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and the Civil Society Organisation, on Thursday October 15, 2020, in Accra.

The program which brought together CSO’s, the Media and Staff of MoPA, was under the theme “ Civil Society Organisation and Democratic Elections in Ghana; The 2020 Election in Focus.

Kyei Mensah-Bonsu, was of the view that the time is right to take a serious look at a complete overhaul of the Constitution.

“We have to build on the work of the Constitutional Review Commission and bring it to a conclusion through a Consultative Assembly. The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs look forward to consolidating our relations with you going forward by engaging relevant CSOs as stakeholders on Bills, Instruments, Agreements etc,” he disclosed.

He however, urges the Civil Society Organizations to help with voter education in addition to support and ensure vigilance at the polls, within these last 42-days to the elections.

“Your advocacy must also go to eliminate violence and diminish fear and panic. By God’s grace, we have been through six successive, successful and peaceful elections. Election 2020 cannot be an exception

Civil Society advocacy has taken our political system notches higher. I must salute the brave men and women who operate in that space”, He acknowledged.

The ministry’s objective for this collaborative engagement was to Examine the context within which the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary you elections would be conducted.

They also sought to analyse the perspectives CSO’s and what they can bring to shape the conduct of free, fair and transparent elections, as well as review the growing challenges confronting them in performing their democracy enhancing roles.