A research conducted by the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) has revealed that the endorsement of presidential candidates by traditional leaders serves as source of incumbency advantage.
The practice, according to the research, had the tendency of tilting the electoral playing field during the conduct of elections which influenced democratic governance of the country.
The research which was carried out before and after the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary elections aimed at finding out whether chiefs’ endorsement had casual effect on voters’ choice in the country’s elections.
In his presentation of the report in Accra yesterday, the Assistant Professor, Department of Government, London School of Economics, Dr George Ofosu, explained that it was understandable for chiefs to endorse incumbent candidates as they seek to bring development to the area.
He further explained that failure by them to do so could see them receive the backlash from the people in the area adding that, this phenomenon tend to affect the voting behaviour of individuals in the country.
DrOfosu noted that the explicit endorsement of presidential candidates was one that could hinder the democratic governance of the country.
According to him, chiefs were supposed to be non-partisan as the constitution banned them from engaging in active party politics and also per the code of royal ethics, were not allowed to make divisive statement either in public or to the media which would show their party political leanings.
Similarly, he indicated that per the royal code of ethics a chief should not openly declare his support by word or deed for a particular party.
He therefore urged traditional leaders to desist from the act and also implored public institutions such as National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and civil society groups to reiterate to politicians and campaign team members, as well as chiefs that endorsement violates the constitution and the code of royal ethics.
In his discussion, a senior lecturer at the Department of Political Science of the University of Ghana, DrSeiduAlidu, said due to the large following paramount chief’s command made it difficult for the enforcement of the law.
He also noted that because of the explicit endorsement politicians attain from the chiefs, they find it difficult in enforcing the law.
DrAlidusaid despite these challenges, there was the need to enforce the legal guidelines relating to the issue which would serve as a warning to others.
Sharing his thoughts on the report, the Chief Director at the Ministry of Parliamentary` Affairs, Dr Evans Aggrey-Darkoh, reiterated the need for the country to revert to the constitutional law in addressing the issue.
He added that it was normal for candidates to pay royal visits to the traditional leaders, and that “we should not see it as an endorsements for candidates.”
BY BENJAMIN ARTCTON-TETTEY AND ANITA ANKRAH
The post Endorsement of presidential candidates by chiefs during election violates constitution – CDD appeared first on Ghanaian Times.
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