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A recent poll conducted by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has revealed that 55 per cent of Ghanaians want the appointment of Assembly Members scrapped from the law books.
A recent poll conducted by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has revealed that 55 per cent of Ghanaians want the appointment of Assembly Members scrapped from the law books.
This perspective reflected the view that the President's appointment of 30 per cent of the members of district assemblies undermined the democratic integrity and autonomy of local assemblies.
“Despite the majority preference for abolishing the appointed assembly member system, the 45 per cent who do not want the position abolished constitute a significant minority. There is, therefore, the need for consensus building on the way forward,” a release issued by the institute to announce the poll result said.
The poll showed that overwhelming majority of Ghanaians, constituting 83.8 per cent, favour the non-partisan election of all Assembly Members.
This decisive figure, it said, highlighted the commitment of Ghanaians to keeping local governance free from partisan control.
It also pointed to a collective aspiration for enhanced transparency, inclusivity, and local accountability.
The poll also found that a notable 68 per cent of Ghanaians demonstrate an understanding of how appointed Assembly Members currently get into office, suggesting a high level of awareness of the country's local governance system.
However, the 32 per cent who are unaware highlighted the need for civic education to enhance public participation in local governance structures.
It said the poll collected data from 1,311 respondents from all 16 regions of the country between October 3 and October 20, 2025, targeting Ghanaians aged 18 years and above.
The release said the country’s current decentralisation and local governance efforts had been underway for over 35 years, and that over these years, various inefficiencies in the system had led to persistent calls for reforms aimed at promoting transparency, accountability and democratic development at the local level.
It was against this backdrop that the IEA conducted the nationwide poll to solicit citizens’ views on how to, among other things, reform the appointed Assembly Member position.
Meanwhile, the Head of Political Science Department of the University for Development Studies (UDS), Dr Gbensuglo Alidu Bukari, has welcomed the poll, saying it is a step in the right direction.
He said the poll had revealed a significant public appetite for reform of the country’s local governance system, with 83.8 per cent of Ghanaians preferring non-partisan elections.
Dr Bukari said the results reflected long-standing concerns about the effectiveness, autonomy, and democratic legitimacy of metropolitan, municipal, and district assemblies (MMDAs) in the country.
He said the country’s current local governance architecture, established under PNDC Law 207 (1988) and entrenched in the 1992 Constitution, was designed to decentralise power and promote grassroots participation.
However, he pointed out that key aspects, particularly the President's authority to appoint 30 per cent of Assembly Members, had been criticised for weakening local accountability.
He stated that non-partisan contests could widen civic engagement, allow competent independents to compete, and help to shift attention from party loyalty to community development priorities.
Dr Bukari called for a national dialogue and constitutional amendments to align the system with contemporary democratic expectations, including fully elected assemblies, revisiting the mode of selecting MMDCEs, and expanding fiscal decentralisation to empower local governments.
The country’s current local government system, which emphasised decentralisation, was formally established in 1988 with the enactment of the Local Government Law (PNDCL 207).
