The Member of Parliament for Abekuma South, Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, has welcomed government’s decision to allow for the election of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), arguing that the era of presidential appointments at the local governance level should come to an end.
Speaking on TV3’s Hot Issues, Sunday, August 2, 2026, Mr. Vanderpuije said strengthening democracy must begin at the grassroots by allowing citizens to directly elect their local leaders.
“The days of appointment to local governance level should be a thing of the past. The fundamentals of our elections and elected officers must start at the grassroots,” he said.
According to the former Accra Mayor, giving residents the opportunity to elect their DCEs would deepen public participation in governance and make local leaders more accountable to the communities they serve.
“We should let the people have a say in who leads them at the grassroots because if the people have a say in who leads them, then they are part of the development of the locality. It is very important,” he stated.
Mr. Vanderpuije criticised the current system in which MMDCEs are appointed by the President, arguing that it often leaves local leaders without a direct mandate from the people.
He expressed confidence that communities across the country are ready for the transition to electing district chief executives.
“This subject has been on the table for a long time, so I am sure that every district in this country will be ready because there are people within the community who may not catch the eye of the President but are ready to lead,” he said.
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has announced that the government has accepted a proposal that all District Chief Executives (DCEs) should be elected.
The announcement was made on Thursday, July 30, as Dr. Ayine presented the government’s White Paper on the recommendations of the Constitutional Review Committee, outlining a series of reforms aimed at strengthening democratic governance, enhancing decentralisation and increasing citizen participation in local government administration.
“On the election of District Chief Executives, the Government has gone further than the Committee. The Committee recommended a phased approach, under which the right to elect a DCE would be tied to a district’s fiscal capacity, so that some districts would vote and others would not.
“The Government takes the position that all District Chief Executives should be elected. Creating a distinction between voting and non-voting districts carries significant political costs and may be perceived as discriminatory against citizens,” Ayine said.
Source: 3news
