The newly sworn-in assembly members of the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly (ASHMA) have failed to elect a presiding member two consecutive times.
The 17 elected and eight government appointees were unable to give two-thirds of the votes cast to any of the presiding member candidates, forcing the Assembly to postpone the elections to allow for further consultations.
Mr. Charles Kissi Kofi, Assemblyman for Nii Man Electoral Area, polled 15 votes at the first voting, and 14 votes for the second rounds of voting; his contender, Mr. Godwin Duvor, Assemblyman for Naa Amerley Electoral Area, also received nine and 12 votes, for the first and second rounds respectively.
The Assembly Members, together with 85-unit committee members, were sworn into office by Mr. Simon Nketiah Gaga, Circuit Court Judge. They took oaths of Official Secrecy and Allegiance.
Mr. Albert Boakye Okyere, the Ashaiman Municipal Chief Executive, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), congratulated the assembly members, and said that t
here was a need for them to create avenues for meaningful dialogue with the electorate by ensuring that they took note of their concerns and addressed them.
Mr. Okyere said they must familiarise themselves with the Local Governance Act 2016 (Act 936), standing orders, statutory provisions, and other regulations that outline their duties.
He urged them to be diligent, accountable, and responsive in a manner that would demonstrate to the people that they were indeed available when their services were required.
He also encouraged them to work in harmony as a corporate entity with a common goal for the development and delivery of services.
Ms. Irene Naa Torshie Addo, the Administrator for the Assembly Common Funds and a former Member of Parliament for Tema West, reading the speech on behalf of President Nana Akufo-Addo, reminded the Assembly and Unit Committee members of their mandate to deliberate, plan, mobilise resources, and make decisions, including bye-laws, to ensure the transformation of their municip
al assembly.
Source: Ghana News Agency