'Gov’t must slow down on constitutional reforms'

Government has been asked to slow down on the constitutional review process to enable it to include other important issues like the abolishing of the winner takes all system of governance.

This came to light when the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) Winner Takes All (WTA) Advisory Committee called on the leadership of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Accra.

Mr Kofi Asamaoah, the General Secretary of TUC commended the IEA for organizing the consultative forum on the abolishing of the winner takes all system of governance.

He said it is important that government slows down the pace of the constitutional review process and include other issues of national importance, which is “dear to the heart of the entire citizenry.”

He bemoaned the situation in which the power to appoint is exclusively given to the Executive arm of government.

He said the current system, which is the winner takes all, has led to the polarization of the country, as everything in the country is being politicized.

He however urged the IEA-WTA Advisory Committee to be cautious of its proposed reforms, as it needed to conduct more research as well as educating the public on such reforms.

Mr Asamoah disclosed that, the ills of the winner takes all system of governance could not be resolved by only changing the constitution, but, there should also be a change of attitude by politicians.

Other members of the TUC present at the meeting generally agreed to the abolishing of the winner takes all system and urged government to slow down on the constitutional review process.

Mr Emile Short, a member of the IEA-WTA Advisory Committee said, the 11 member committee, after holding the nationwide public consultation would propose recommendations for reforms, with the hope that they may be fed into the nation’s on-going constitution review process.

He therefore supported the call by the leadership of TUC to government to slow down the pace of the constitutional review process.