By Nicholas Osei-Wusu
The reconstituted Mampong Municipal Assembly in the Ashanti region has eventually elected a Presiding Member after five rounds of voting.
The Assembly Member for the Mampong Newtown Electoral Area, Daniel Oduro, was elected after his only contender stepped down from the race after the initial voting failed to produce a clear winner in accordance with the Local Government Act.
Daniel Oduro and the Assembly Member for the Bosofuo Electoral Area, Anthony Appiah, were the only candidates for the Presiding Member election after the close of Nominations 6th May, 2024.
The Assembly had to reopen Nominations for fresh election following the failure of any of the two candidates to win the first three elections after the Assembly was inaugurated in February this year.
The latest contest saw the Assembly Member for Newtown win the first round of voting by 31 votes, as against 17 for Anthony Appiah, Member for Bosofuo.
In accordance with the law, just after the Mampong Municipal Electoral Officer, Kwabena Karikari, had signalled for a second round of voting, Mr. Appiah announced his withdrawal from the contest to back the Newtown Member and rallied his supporters to do the same.
Despite the withdrawal, another round of voting was conducted for the Assembly Members to vote either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to approve or disapprove of the remaining candidate.
At the end of the exercise, 45 of the 49 Assembly Members voted ‘Yes’ paving the way for the swearing in of Daniel Oduro as the Presiding Member of the Municipal Assembly.
The Magistrate of the Mampong District Court, Denis Eyiram Fumiy, led him to swear the Oaths of Office, Allegiance and Secrecy. In his acceptance remark, the new Presiding Member pledged to serve the Assembly to the best of his ability.
“As your presiding member, I will strive to uphold the highest standards of fairness, impartiality and integrity in conducting the proceedings of this esteemed body. My aim will be to facilitate open and constructive dialogue, to ensure that all voices are heard, and to guide our deliberations towards productive outcomes that serve the best interests of our constituents. I recognize the gravity of this responsibility, and I pledge to execute my duties with the utmost diligence and commitment,” the new Presiding Member said.
On his part, the losing candidate, Anthony Appiah, explained to GBC News that, his withdrawal from the contest was to ensure that nothing setback progress of the Municipal Assembly, noting that, the inability to choose a Presiding Member since its inauguration about three months ago has already cost the Assembly substantially, including the inability to constitute the various Sub Committees.
“I’ll support him with the vision with which I came to the contest for the sake of Members of the Assembly,” Mr. Appiah assured.
The Municipal Chief Executive, Thomas Appiah Kubi, described the failure of the Assembly to elect a Presiding Member since February as a major setback in the quest for checks and balances as well as the need for accountability and transparency in the running of the Municipal Assembly. He therefore highly commended the Member for Bosofuo for his genuine compromise in the larger interest of Mampong.
