Dr. Peter Boamah Otokunor, the Director of Presidential Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness and former Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has urged party supporters to disregard assertion of imposition in the nomination of Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs).
His comments come in the wake of protests over MMDCE nominations in some constituencies. In Tema, irate youth stormed the Metropolitan Assembly demanding the appointment of an indigene as mayor, amid rumours that Ebi Bright was being considered over Patience Ankamah Addo, who had earlier been tipped for the role.
The protestors burned tyres and beat drums to register their displeasure.
Similarly, in Asante Mampong, disgruntled NDC supporters vandalised the party office and set items ablaze over the MCE nomination.
Speaking on Channel One’s Newsroom on Monday, April 14, Dr. Otokunor stressed that the selection process is thorough and guided by strict criteria during vetting.
He explained that nominees are assessed based on performance, and only one candidate is chosen per position.
Dr Otokunor further clarified that decisions made after vetting are final and communicated to the Office of the President, where the President officially confirms and announces the nominees through the Local Government Minister.
He assured supporters that the process is transparent and urged them to trust the system in place.
Dr Otokunor noted “They should allay the fears. It is no about imposition. People have gone through vetting. When people go through vetting there is a criteria that is used to mark them out. So some may perform than others. So obviously at the end of the day you can’t have two DCEs. One must perform and that person will be decided upon.
“The interesting thing is that immediately after this vetting the decision is made and it is not changed anywhere. The decision that is made is communicated officially to the office of the president where the president now officially makes the determination and announces that through the Local Government Minister.”