The Need For Amendment To Allow Constituency Communication Officers And Constituency Electoral/research Officers To Go Through Contest

Article 7 of the Constitution of the New Patriotic Party, NPP which talks about Constituency Organization stipulates;

(1) " There shall be, in every Parliamentary Constituency of Ghana, a branch of the party, consisting of members who have enrolled in the Constituency. The basic unit of Organization of the Constituency shall be the Polling station area.

2. Each Constituency shall have a Constituency Executive Committee, which shall consist of 10 elected Constituency officers and seven appointed to add on to the number to make 17.

I abjectly script to add my voice to the above subject matter on the need for an Amendment to allow Constituency communication officers and Electoral/Research officers to go through contests or elections, not out of malice but to air out my views on why the need for certain amendments to our Party's Constitution which serves as the guiding principles and rules for the effective running of the Party.

To set the ball rolling, I have a different perspective on why the need for individuals who are appointed by the Constituency structure i.e Constituency Financial Secretary, Deputy Constituency Organizer, Deputy Constituency Women Organizer, Deputy Constituency Youth Organizer, Deputy Nasara Coordinator, Electoral/Research officer, and the Communication Officer.

The above-mentioned positions are appointed without going through any vigorous contest to serve the party in the Constituencies across the length and breadth of the Country which comes with lots of setbacks to the enhancement of our democratic credentials or values.

Fast forward, my argument will be centered on the two(2) appointed officers i.e. Constituency Communication Officer and Constituency Electoral/Research officers which are very sensitive positions we often gloss over.

Firstly, on why the a need for the Constituency Communication Officer to go through through contest. Communication around the globe mainly in all spheres of life plays an enormous role in the advancement, propagation, dissemination, and flow of information from one person to another.

Without any shred of doubt, contemporary politics place a premium on effective communication which helps political parties to share, disseminate, and propagate their vision and policy initiatives through the mouthpiece of the Party through the communication officer and its subordinates.

Interestingly, some people are appointed in some of these Constituencies without proper background checks of their involvement or selection, and some are even appointed through favoritism and who is closer to the Constituency Chairman or any member of the elected Constituency Executives.

This doesn't give way for competent individuals to lead the communication of the Party in the Constituencies which come with lots of weak and ineffective communication, and people who are interested in being Constituency party communication officers must go through a vigorous vetting process to sieve for those with the requisite skills, knowledge, and experience to contest for such positions during the Constituency Annual Delegates Conference.

Primarily, this current phenomenon has weakened the communication structure of the Party which led to ineffectiveness, lack of coordination, and total disregard for the ethics and values of communication.

Secondly, on the issue of the amendment of the Party's constitution to create more room for the election of the Constituency Electoral/Research Officers. This is the same phenomenon as we continue to face similar difficulties with the huge gap created in terms of communication.

In a strict sense, Electoral/Research work can only be handled by individuals with the relevant knowledge of how to handle Electoral and Research issues to the advantage of the Party in our various Constituencies.

Ordinarily, these appointed positions are complicated as persons without the capacity, ability, and deep knowledge are given the opportunity and they struggle on how to champion an achievable cause by way of contributing significantly through effective research to improve the electoral fortunes of the Party in some of these Constituencies.

In other cases, persons who are appointed through favoritism and who you know fail to deliver because they have been given the chance through a superior who always influences them on how to do their work and the result would be about serving them and not the party as Constituency Electoral/Research officers.

Simply put, what's mind-blowing is when you go close to some of these persons appointed officers and their lack of in-depth understanding of the position offered to them as Constituency Electoral/ Research officers. This doesn't inure to the benefit of the Party but rather draws back the gains made for the party for the past years.

In summary, I vehemently oppose the appointment of the above-mentioned two(2) key positions for the reasons and sentiments expressed above devoid of any personal interest or malice but for the improvement and increase in votes of the Party in the various Constituencies across the nook and cranny of the country.

I call on the National leadership of the New Patriotic Party, NPP to look into the subject matter raised for the development and progress of the Party.

Shalom!
Long live NPP!
Abdulai Abdul Razak ✍️
Tamale South Constituency
[email protected]