Cleric suggests limit on sitting MPs to contest seats

Kumasi, May 9, GNA - A cleric has suggested that just as an incumbent President could contest for the office for only two terms (eight years), so should sitting Members of Parliament (MPs) be also limited to a specific number of times to contest for parliamentary seats.

Reverend Joseph K. Gyimah, founder of the True Light of Christ Church, who made the suggestion, said setting out tenure of office for sitting MPs would not only enhance fairness in the country's democracy but would also bring about genuine competition for parliamentary seats. Rev Gyimah was speaking at a quarterly meeting of the youth fellowship of the church at Abrepo in Kumasi, on Saturday.

He said the current situation in which sitting MPs were allowed to contest parliamentary seats indefinitely and depending on their desire to do so, was unfair and did not augur well for growth of the country's democracy.

Rev Gyimah observed that even though leadership of the various political parties related well with each other, "this can not be said of their supporters and sympathisers at the constituency levels."

He made it clear that the fraternity that existed between leaders of the different political parties at the top would be meaningless if their sympathisers and members at the grassroots level continued to see each other as enemies.

Rev Gyimah advised the leadership of political parties to embark on programmes to educate their membership to understand that belonging to different political parties did not make them enemies. Such education should not be left unto only the political leaders but also opinion leaders and heads of religious bodies should be part of the education drive, he said.

He cautioned that politics and democracy would loose their significance if politicians and their supporters continued to attack each other instead of seeking for means of bringing about peace and development to the country.