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The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Divine Otoo Agorhom, has called for a more inclusive and grassroots-driven approach in the selection of Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), proposing internal party vetting at the constituency level before final nominations are submitted to the President.
His recommendation comes in response to recent protests by supporters of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in several districts, where certain MMDCE nominations have faced public backlash and rejection.
Speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Sunday, April 13, Agorhom emphasized the importance of party ownership and involvement in the nomination process, arguing that it would foster broader acceptance and minimize political unrest.
“We should get the applicants to first of all go to the constituency so that the party endorses them because it is the party that produces the government,” he stated. “Then the constituency party looks at it and says yes, we know this person and he’s lived well with us, and we think that, knowing him and knowing his contribution within this space, that person will be able to meet the political expectations in terms of the people.”
Agorhom outlined a step-by-step selection process that would begin at the grassroots level and progress through the regional and national structures of the party.
“So that it will start from the constituency before coming to the region. The region will further do its own filtration before we send it to the national committee, which will do further shortlisting before presenting it to the president,” he explained. “So the three shortlisted would have gone through all the stages of filtration, and any of them will be accepted by the grassroots.”
In addition to his proposed vetting process, Agorhom also expressed support for long-term reforms that would allow MMDCEs to be elected rather than appointed.
“I think until we get to the process where MMDCEs are elected, this should be the procedure every party should adopt,” he added.
His remarks have sparked renewed discussion around the selection of local government leaders and the need for systems that better reflect the will of the people.
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