By Harriet Boateng Sarpong
Tema Nov. 14 GNA – Some 70 women in Tema have so far picked nomination forms to participate in the upcoming district-level elections scheduled for Tuesday, December 19, 2023.
Electoral Commission’s offices in the Tema Metro and Tema West Constituencies said the more than 70 women had picked forms to contest Assembly and Unit Committee Member positions.
Some officers at the Electoral Commission told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that more women were making enquiries and had showed interest in picking forms to contest the elections.
With the tenure of the current Assembly Members and Unit Committee Members, elected in 2019, nearing its end this December, preparations are underway for the election of new Assembly Members and Unit Committee Members.
Madam Rose Obeng, a former Unit Committee Member in the Lashiebi Electoral area, said: “In the past four years, I stood for Unit Committee member and got the highest votes. This has motivated me to aim higher so, I decided to run for the Assembly Member position.”
She said challenges women participating in the Assembly Elections were encountering including lack of financial resources, intimidation from political parties and general lack of interest among the voting public.
“Since picking the forms, I’ve faced challenges, including intimidation and prejudice against women in leadership roles, especially taking over from a man. It’s tough, they pull down your poster or slap theirs on top of yours.
“While campaigning, you find yourself covering people’s medical bills because you want their votes, some complain of hunger, and you end up providing support; otherwise, they won’t give their votes to you.”
“I recognised that in my transition from the Unit Committee level to the Assembly level, it was essential to empower other women to fill the role, therefore, I personally selected two capable females to run for the Unit Committee member position in my area.”
She appealed to stakeholders to support female aspirants to ensure equitable representation.
Rose Akyaa, who is contesting Assembly Member election at the Railway Electoral Area, claimed character assassination compelled her to withdraw from the contest years ago.
“This time around, we’re not backing down, in 2010, I faced such challenges, and fear led me to quit, however, this time, I’m determined to persevere, regardless of attempts to undermine my campaign, such as tearing down my posters and spreading unfounded rumours about my funding sources.”
Nora Yeboah, competing for Unit Committee Member position in the Lashiebi Electoral Area, told the GNA that contributions of some women to the development of the area inspired her to contest.
Presently, out of the 22 electoral areas in the Tema Metro and Tema West constituencies, only two are Assembly Members.
The District Assembly Elections Act of 1994 in Ghana mandates that District Assembly elections (DLE) are organised every four years, with a minimum of six-month gap from parliamentary elections.
However, the process went off-schedule in 1988/89, 1994, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2015, and 2019.
Despite being a practical opportunity for civic engagement at selecting representatives for Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies, DLEs have been greeted with apathy and disinterest, with voter turnout consistently falling below expectation.
A Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) research shows participation of DLE voter turnout as follows:1988/89 59.3 per cent, 1994, 29.3 per cent, 2002, 41.6 per cent, 2006, 33.1 per cent, 2010, 35.5 per cent and 2015, 30.6 per cent.
The Electoral Commission (EC) has set a goal of achieving a 60 percent voter turnout for this year’s elections.
GNA