DOCSLIB.ORG

Democracy Watch 6 & 7

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Democracy Watch 6 & 7 Democracy Watch Vol. 2, No. 2&3 April-September 2001 1 A Quarterly Newsletter of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development 6&7 DemocracyWatch 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 statements. The openness to the media Volume 2, No. 2&3 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789 was underscored by President Kufuors April-September 2001 The Media in the news conference to mark his first 100 Post Rawlings Era days in office, an event never witnessed ISSN: 0855-417X during the 19 years ex-President Rawlings was in power. A new era of positive government- In this issue media relations? In an early gesture of acknowledging the contribution of the media to Ghanaian Among the media, media watchers, democratic development, the NPP and observers of Ghanaian politics, government decided to abort ongoing EThe Media in the Post Rawlings Era there is a well-justified feeling of relief state prosecutions against journalists for .................Page 1 and euphoria over the demise of a criminal and or seditious libel. Most media unfriendly-regime. Indeed, it significantly, it has made good on its promise to repeal the obnoxious criminal E The New Challenges in Intra-media was expected that the relationship Relations .............. Page 2 between the media and the new NPP libel law hitherto used by government to administration would be a departure harass the media. EThe Stadium Disaster and Other from the past, considering the Fallouts ...............Page 4 persecution some sections of the media The administrations policy of providing suffered under the nineteen years of access to the media has achieved dual goals: the dark side of the old regime is The New Council of State Rawlings PNDC and NDC E being exposed, new officials have been .............Page 5 governments and the pro-media positions taken by the NPP when it was able to articulate their intentions, and in many instances, have been successful in Questions Over Vetting in opposition. E winning public sympathy and Procedures ................Page 6 Eight months into its four-year term of cooperation. office Kufuors chemistry with the E Ripples from the June Fourth media has been warm. There has not Boom ............. Page 8 been any sign of the open hostility that .........the NPP government has characterized the relationship between made good on its promise to government and the media in the past. repeal the obnoxious criminal Towards National Reconciliation libel law hitherto used by E In a powerfully symbolic about-face ............ Page 10 government to harass the media. that reversed the previous regimes style of running a closed administration, the NPP government began its term by In addition, journalists have been honored opening up to the media and accrediting with presidential appointments. Elizabeth all segments of the industry to cover Ohene, formerly of the British the presidency: the private media have Broadcasting Corporation, is Minister of Media Relations; veteran Graphic EDITORIAL TEAM been given full access to the Castle, the official seat of government. Sports editor Joe Aggrey is deputy n Baffour Agyeman-Duah Minister for Youth and Sports; Kabral n Audrey Gadzekpo This new openness has been further Blay Amihere, publisher of the n E. Gyimah-Boadi strengthened by the decentralization of Independent and president of the West n Edem Selormey information flow. The President, African Journalists Association, is n Kwesi Yankah Ministers, MPs and party functionaries Ghanas envoy to Sierra Leone; Kwesi have all been readily available to the Biney, editor of the Guide is a District media through press conferences, radio Chief Executive; and Haruna Atta, Democracy Watch is published with funding from publisher of the Accra Mail, is a member the Danish International Development Agency, and television appearances, and press DANIDA Continued on next column E Continued on page 2 E Democracy Watch Vol. 2, No. 2&3 April-September 2001 2 of the National Commission on Culture and the Board of the Indeed, the episode presented a key test of the extent to Tema Oil Refinery (TOR). which officials of the new government were going to tolerate provocations by the media. After all, the manner in which the new NPP government reacts to aggravation from the But government-media relations have not been all rosy. There media is what will set it apart from its illiberal predecessor. have been testy moments. In spite of the enormous goodwill The episode also raised questions about what the media towards President Kufuor the media criticized his visit to was doing to improve its own level of professionalism. rr Togo to participate in the celebration of President Gnassingbe Eyademas coup as indiscreet and an affront to the 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 democratic forces in that country. The media also rattled his 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 government over reports of harassment of members of the 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890The New Challenges in 1 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 past government by the security agencies. The absence of 123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901 consultation and public debate before Ghana joined the HIPC Intra-Media Relations Initiative has also received criticisms from the media. And the media has trenchantly criticized the circumstances In further reverberations of the Obestebi-Lamptey and surrounding the governments award of a contract to lift oil Graphic story, Chronicle publisher and editor-in-chief, Mr. from Nigeria to a private company Sahara. These provide Nana Kofi Coomson chastised the Daily Graphic and its positive indications that the media will not shirk its watchdog editor, Mr. Elvis Aryeh in an interview on a local radio responsibility, nor its responsibility to monitor the performance station, for what he described as professional misconduct of the government and to point out its lapses for correction. for not cross checking the Obetsebi-Lamptey story. Mr. Jake versus the Graphic Coomson also said the Minister of Presidential Affairs would be right to sue if the paper did not retract the story. The Perhaps the first major test of tolerance for a government next day, the leading state-owned daily published a full-page considered liberal in its attitude to the press was the editorial under the headline Enough of the filth of Kofi altercation between the Minister for Presidential Affairs, Coomson the crimson pirate. Mr. Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, and the Daily Graphic over the publication of a Ghana News Agency (GNA) story during The Graphic editorial accused the Chronicle publisher of the Easter period in which the Minority Leader, Mr. Alban unprofessional and unethical behavior in gathering news and Bagbin, accused Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey of a conflict of the use of blackmail and extortion to suppress news stories. interest in the award of contracts to rehabilitate the Castle. The Graphic also claimed to have credible information about Coomsons shameless compromise of the ethics of The threat of libel action against Graphic, GNA and JOY- journalism in pursuit of his greedy motives and cited FM, and the huge amount of damages the Minister demanded instances of Coomson allegedly blackmailing named public from the Graphic in particular, was reminiscent of the officials. unofficial strategy of the NDC to cripple the press through libel actions in which they demanded huge compensations. The most obvious issue to be addressed is the propriety of Considering the fact that the originator of the story was a Mr. Aryeh using an entire page of a publicly-owned credible source the state-owned Ghana News Agency newspaper to launch an attack on a detractor, rather than it was reasonable for the Graphic to have assumed its seeking a rejoinder from the radio program on which he veracity. It seemed unfair on the part of the Minister to was criticized or writing a rebuttal addressing the specific accuse the paper of malice, even if the paper was at first accusations of a lack of professionalism that had been reluctant to retract the story. In the fast and competitive leveled against him and his paper. world of information, common newsroom practice the world over is predicated on the fact that established wire service The incident also highlights the problem that most stories are credible and publishable. newspapers, both state and private, are facing as a result of having been strongly aligned to political camps in the It is encouraging that Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey dropped the past and therefore having compromised
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Inter-Media Agenda-Setting Effects in Ghana: Newspaper Vs. Online and State Vs
    Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Retrospective Theses and Dissertations Dissertations 2008 Inter-media agenda-setting effects in Ghana: newspaper vs. online and state vs. private Etse Godwin Sikanku Iowa State University Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/rtd Part of the Journalism Studies Commons Recommended Citation Sikanku, Etse Godwin, "Inter-media agenda-setting effects in Ghana: newspaper vs. online and state vs. private" (2008). Retrospective Theses and Dissertations. 15414. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/rtd/15414 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Dissertations at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Retrospective Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Inter-media agenda-setting effects in Ghana: newspaper vs. online and state vs. private by Etse Godwin Sikanku A thesis submitted to the graduate faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE Major: Journalism and Mass Communication Program of Study Committee: Eric Abbott (Major Professor) Daniela Dimitrova Francis Owusu Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 2008 Copyright© Etse Godwin Sikanku, 2008. All rights reserved. 1457541 1457541 2008 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES iii LIST OF FIGURES iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v ABSTRACT vii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION AND STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM 1 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 4 The agenda-setting theory 4 Agenda-setting research in Ghana 4 Inter-media agenda-setting 5 Online News 8 State Ownership 10 Press history in Ghana 13 Research Questions 19 CHAPTER 3.
    [Show full text]
  • The Regional Balance of Presidential Tickets in Ghanaian Elections: Analysis of the 2008 General Elections
    3 The Regional Balance of Presidential Tickets in Ghanaian Elections: Analysis of the 2008 General Elections Ziblim Iddi Introduction Ghana’s Fourth Republican Constitution prescribed a hybrid of the presidential and parliamentary systems of government to be practiced in a multi-party democracy. This is a clear departure from the country’s previous attempt at constitutional government in the first three republics. The country experimented with the presidential system of government in the first and third republics, and practiced the parliamentary system under the second republic. It is reported that the constitutional experts assembled by the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC) government to produce a draft constitution for the fourth republic were guided by the lessons learned under the first three republican constitutions. For example, the requirement that the majority of ministers of state shall be appointed from among members of Parliament as prescribed by Article 78 of the 1992 constitution was recommended because of lessons learned under the third republican constitution. The president, under the third republic, failed to get his budget passed by parliament in 1981. This was largely blamed on the fact that no member of parliament was a minister of state under the 1979 constitution. The framers of the 1992 constitution, therefore, recommended hybridization to cure the mischief of members of parliament of the ruling party sabotaging the president’s agenda. Nonetheless, Ghana’s current hybrid system of government could easily pass for a presidential system (Ninsin 2008). 64 Issues in Ghana’s Electoral Politics The institutional arrangement and power dynamics between the executive and the legislature sanctioned by the 1992 constitution has inadvertently created what is gradually becoming an ‘imperial presidency’ in Ghana.
    [Show full text]
  • The Future of Newspapers in a Digital Era: a Study of Daily
    University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh THE FUTURE OF NEWSPAPERS IN A DIGITAL ERA: A STUDY OF DAILY GRAPHIC AND DAILY GUIDE BY THELMA NAA ANERCHO ABBEY 10702649 THIS DISSERTATION IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF MASTER OF ARTS (MA) DEGREE IN COMMUNICATION STUDIES DEGREE OCTOBER, 2019 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DECLARATION I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my research work carried out at the School of Communication studies, University of Ghana, Legon. No part of this study has been submitted either in whole or in part for another degree elsewhere. All references cited have been duly acknowledged. ………………………………… THELMA NAA ANERCHO ABBEY (STUDENT) DATE: ……………………………………… ……………………………………… PROFESSOR AUDREY GADZEKPO (SUPERVISOR) DATE: ……………………………………… i University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DEDICATION This work is dedicated to my father Mr Jerry Abbey, my mother Mrs Gladys Abbey and my siblings Delphina, Nadia and Claudia Abbey. ii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to thank Jehovah God for giving me the strength and wisdom to conduct this study. I am grateful to my supervisor, Professor Audrey Gadzekpo for her time and effort in guiding me throughout the research. I would also like to acknowledge the guidance and encouragement I received from family and friends, I say thank you for your selflessness and support. I also want to thank all news editors, sales and circulations managers and news reporters who spent their precious time to help me in the collection of data and made it possible for me to carry out this study.
    [Show full text]
  • Ghana's Constitution of 1992 with Amendments Through 1996
    PDF generated: 26 Aug 2021, 16:30 constituteproject.org Ghana's Constitution of 1992 with Amendments through 1996 This complete constitution has been generated from excerpts of texts from the repository of the Comparative Constitutions Project, and distributed on constituteproject.org. constituteproject.org PDF generated: 26 Aug 2021, 16:30 Table of contents Preamble . 14 CHAPTER 1: THE CONSTITUTION . 14 1. SUPREMACY OF THE CONSTITUTION . 14 2. ENFORCEMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION . 14 3. DEFENCE OF THE CONSTITUTION . 15 CHAPTER 2: TERRITORIES OF GHANA . 16 4. TERRITORIES OF GHANA . 16 5. CREATION, ALTERATION OR MERGER OF REGIONS . 16 CHAPTER 3: CITIZENSHIP . 17 6. CITIZENSHIP OF GHANA . 17 7. PERSONS ENTITLED TO BE REGISTERED AS CITIZENS . 17 8. DUAL CITIZENSHIP . 18 9. CITIZENSHIP LAWS BY PARLIAMENT . 18 10. INTERPRETATION . 19 CHAPTER 4: THE LAWS OF GHANA . 19 11. THE LAWS OF GHANA . 19 CHAPTER 5: FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS . 20 Part I: General . 20 12. PROTECTION OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS . 20 13. PROTECTION OF RIGHT TO LIFE . 20 14. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL LIBERTY . 21 15. RESPECT FOR HUMAN DIGNITY . 22 16. PROTECTION FROM SLAVERY AND FORCED LABOUR . 22 17. EQUALITY AND FREEDOM FROM DISCRIMINATION . 23 18. PROTECTION OF PRIVACY OF HOME AND OTHER PROPERTY . 23 19. FAIR TRIAL . 23 20. PROTECTION FROM DEPRIVATION OF PROPERTY . 26 21. GENERAL FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS . 27 22. PROPERTY RIGHTS OF SPOUSES . 29 23. ADMINISTRATIVE JUSTICE . 29 24. ECONOMIC RIGHTS . 29 25. EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS . 29 26. CULTURAL RIGHTS AND PRACTICES . 30 27. WOMEN'S RIGHTS . 30 28. CHILDREN'S RIGHTS . 30 29. RIGHTS OF DISABLED PERSONS .
    [Show full text]
  • GHANA COUNTRY ASSESSMENT OCTOBER 2001 Country
    GHANA COUNTRY ASSESSMENT OCTOBER 2001 Country Information and Policy Unit CONTENTS 1. SCOPE OF THE DOCUMENT 1.1 - 1.5 2. GEOGRAPHY 2.1 - 2.2 3. HISTORY 3.1 - 3.9 The Economic situation 3.10 - 3.14 4. INSTRUMENTS OF THE STATE Political situation Recent Events 4.1 - 4.3 The Constitution 4.4 - 4.7 The Police 4.8 – 4.9 The Judiciary 4.10 - 4.17 Arrest, detention and the death penalty 4.18 - 4.22 Prisons 4.23 - 4.24 Health care 4.25 - 4.28 4.29 - 4.35 5. HUMAN RIGHTS: GENERAL Introduction 5.1 - 5.4 Freedom of Assembly 5.5 - 5.9 Freedom of Association 5.10 -5.12 Freedom of Speech and the Press 5.13 - 5.24 Freedom of the Individual 5.25 - 5.27 Freedom of Movement 5.28 - 5.29 Freedom of Religion 5.30 - 5.34 Freedom from Racial Discrimination 5.35 6. HUMAN RIGHTS: SPECIFIC GROUPS Ethnic groups 6.1 - 6.4 Religious groups 6.5 - 6.7 Homosexuals 6.8 The disabled 6.9 7. HUMAN RIGHTS: WOMEN AND CHILDREN Women 7.1 - 7.4 (i) Female Genital Mutilation 7.5 - 7.6 (ii)The Trokosi system 7.7 - 7.9 Children 7.10 - 7.15 (i) Education 7.16 – 7.18 8. HUMAN RIGHTS: OTHER ISSUES Civil disturbances 8.1 - 8.4 Security situation 8.5 (i) National Service 8.6 Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) 8.7 ANNEX A: POLITICAL PARTIES ANNEX B: PROMINENT PEOPLE PAST AND PRESENT ANNEX C: CHRONOLOGY ANNEX D: Committees for the Defence of the Revolution (CDRs) ANNEX E: BIBLIOGRAPHY 1 1.
    [Show full text]
  • A Pre-Election Assessment Report June 1, 1992
    A V InternationalFoundation for Electoral Systems 1620 I STREET, N.W. *SUITE6, ,vWASHINGTON, D.C. 20006. (202)828-8507 - FAX (202)452-0804 (202) 785-1672 GHANA: A PRE-ELECTION ASSESSMENT REPORT JUNE 1, 1992 Laurie A. Cooper Fred M. Hayward Anthony W.J. Lee This report was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development. This material is in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission; citation of IFES as the source would be - appreciated. BOARD OF F.Clifton White Patricia Hutar James M. Cannon David Jones Randa Teague DIRECTORS Chairman C. Secretary Counsel Richard M. Scammon Joseph Napolitan Charles Manatt John C.White Richard W.Soudriette Vice Chairman Treasurer Robert C.Walker Director TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................... 1 I. INTRODUCTION ........................................ 3 II. BACKGROUND TO THE DEMOCRATIZATION PROCESS .............. 5 Economic and Infrastructural Background ......................... 5 Political Background ...................................... 6 The New Constitution ..................................... 9 National Commission for Democracy .......................... 9 Committee of Experts ................................... 10 National Consultative Assembly .............................. 10 The Constitution ....................................... 11 Civil Liberties .... .................................... 12 III. ELECTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ...................... 14 Referendum Observations ..................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Parliament of Ghana: a Countervailing Force in the Governance Process?
    The Parliament of Ghana: A countervailing force in the governance process? By Ernest Darfour Ghana (or the Gold Coast at the time), established its first semblance of a Parliament (Legislative Council) in 1850 with representatives appointed by the British colonial government. The Legislative Council consisted of the Governor and at least two other person appointed by the colonial administration. The Legislative Council was required to make laws and ordinances necessary for the peace, order and governance of the Gold Coast. The legislature at the time was merely an advisory body and had no oversight power over the colonial government. Various agitations against the colonial authorities for equal representation and universal suffrage led to the transformation of the non-elected legislature into an elected Legislative Assembly in 1954. After gaining independence in March 1957, Ghana saw four Parliaments under four different Republics (i.e. First Republican Constitution of 1960, the Second Republican Constitution of 1969, the Third Republican Constitution of 1981 and the Fourth Republican Constitution of 1992). The incessant interventions of the military in politics truncated the terms of the first three Parliaments in 1966, 1972 and 1981. The democratic instability that was witnessed over the period ensured that Parliament was an unstable governance institution until 1993, when democracy was finally restored under the Fourth Republic. Since then, Ghana has conducted six multiparty elections that have been described as free and fair by both international and local observers. Five Parliaments have been elected and 1 completed their terms successfully, with the Sixth Parliament gradually approaching its expiration in January 2017.
    [Show full text]
  • Akufo-Addo Delivers 2Nd Annual Aliu Mahama Lecture
    SPEECH BY NANA AKUFO-ADDO, 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE OF THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY, AT THE 2ND ALIU MAHAMA MEMORIAL LECTURES AT THE BANQUET HALL, STATE HOUSE, ACCRA, ON 9TH DECEMBER, 2014 ON “ONE GHANA: SECURING OUR FUTURE”. It was with great pleasure, tinged with considerable sadness, that I accepted the invitation from my good friend, Kwasi Abeasi, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Aliu Mahama Foundation, to be the second speaker in the series of the Foundation’s Annual Memorial Lectures. Pleasure, because, having missed last year’s inaugural lecture delivered, according to my information, with panache and verve by Mahamudu Bawumia, I would be able, today, to bear testimony to the distinguished statesman in whose honour the Foundation and these Memorial Lectures have been instituted. Shakespeare’s inimitable language, in the mouth of Mark Anthony, during his celebrated funeral oration for Julius Ceasar, captures it best: “He was my friend, faithful and just to me.” Dependable friend, faithful colleague, just leader – the attributes of Aliu Mahama. The first of his faith in our history to occupy the high office of Vice President of the Republic, his conduct in that office was a credit to all Moslems, and, indeed, to all Ghanaians. Proud Dagomba, he personified the best traits of the Ghanaian character – patriotic, responsible, tolerant. I remember the first speech he made to the gathered ranks of the NPP at our Congress in Ho in 2000, soon after his nomination as running mate to then candidate J.A. Kufuor, with whom he partnered to give the Fourth Republic its best government so far.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Date 28/09/2021 19:08:59
    Ghana: From fragility to resilience? Understanding the formation of a new political settlement from a critical political economy perspective Item Type Thesis Authors Ruppel, Julia Franziska Rights <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by- nc-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br />The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a <a rel="license" href="http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Licence</a>. Download date 28/09/2021 19:08:59 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10454/15062 University of Bradford eThesis This thesis is hosted in Bradford Scholars – The University of Bradford Open Access repository. Visit the repository for full metadata or to contact the repository team © University of Bradford. This work is licenced for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence. GHANA: FROM FRAGILITY TO RESILIENCE? J.F. RUPPEL PHD 2015 Ghana: From fragility to resilience? Understanding the formation of a new political settlement from a critical political economy perspective Julia Franziska RUPPEL Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities University of Bradford 2015 GHANA: FROM FRAGILITY TO RESILIENCE? UNDERSTANDING THE FORMATION OF A NEW POLITICAL SETTLEMENT FROM A CRITICAL POLITICAL ECONOMY PERSPECTIVE Julia Franziska RUPPEL ABSTRACT Keywords: Critical political economy; electoral politics; Ghana; political settle- ment; power relations; social change; statebuilding and state formation During the late 1970s Ghana was described as a collapsed and failed state. In contrast, today it is hailed internationally as beacon of democracy and stability in West Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Page 1 of 3
    Responses to Information Requests - Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Page 1 of 3 Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Home > Research Program > Responses to Information Requests Responses to Information Requests Responses to Information Requests (RIR) respond to focused Requests for Information that are submitted to the Research Directorate in the course of the refugee protection determination process. The database contains a seven-year archive of English and French RIRs. Earlier RIRs may be found on the UNHCR's Refworld website. Please note that some RIRs have attachments which are not electronically accessible. To obtain a PDF copy of an RIR attachment please email [email protected]. 5 December 2013 GHA104685.E Ghana: New Patriotic Party (NPP), including origin, structure, leadership and membership; treatment of NPP members by authorities (2011-November 2013) Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa 1. Overview Sources report that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was founded in 1992 (Europa 2013a; PHW 2012, 543; NPP n.d.a). The NPP is reportedly the main opposition party in Ghana (Reuters 9 Apr. 2013; Deutsche Welle 30 Nov. 2012; Daily Trust 14 Jan. 2013). On its website, the NPP describes itself as a "liberal democratic party" that champions "multi-party democracy" (n.d.a). The NPP's aims and objectives reportedly include: • protecting human rights and rule of law; • building a "free and democratic system of government" • reducing "excessive centralization" in the government • promoting a "vibrant, free-market economy" • improving climate for private enterprise by decreasing bureaucratic restrictions. (NPP n.d.c) Similarly, the 2012 Political Handbook of the World (PHW) reports that the NPP's platform advocates for human rights, strengthening democracy, and holding free and fair elections (2012, 543).
    [Show full text]
  • Creating New Regions in Ghana: Populist Or Rational Pathway to Development?
    Creating New Regions in Ghana: Populist or Rational Pathway to Development? Ransford Edward Van Gyampo Department of Political Science, University of Ghana Email:[email protected] DOI//http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/gjds.v15i2.1 Abstract The proposal for regional re-organisation and the creation of four additional ones seem feasible and has the needed popular support. Using archival sources and data from the IEA-VOTO Survey, the paper undertakes a thorough and detailed analysis of the processes leading to the creation of additional regions, and reveals imponderable challenges likely to be encountered. It argues that popular support for governmental policy proposals is not necessarily coterminous with feasibility, effectiveness and relevance. The paper therefore examines the feasibility and relevance of the proposal for the creation of additional regions in Ghana and proffers policy recommendations to re-focus the attention of policy makers on the critical challenges and barriers to rural development and how they could be effectively tackled. Keywords: New Regions, Ghana; Campaign Promise, Cost, Development Introduction In the lead up to Ghana’s 2016 General Elections, the flag bearer of theN ew Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo made several promises to Ghanaians. Notable among these promises is the creation of additional regions to ensure effective administration and the devolution of power NPP( Manifesto, 2016). Upon the assumption of power as the elected President of Ghana in January 2017, Nana Akufo-Addo gave indications that four (4) new regions would be created beginning from 2018 to bring the total number of regions in Ghana to fourteen. Per the campaign promise, the process towards the creation of a new region out of the current Western Region to be called the Western North Region is to be initiated.
    [Show full text]
  • African Successes, Volume I: Government and Institutions
    This PDF is a selection from a published volume from the National Bureau of Economic Research Volume Title: African Successes, Volume I: Government and Institutions Volume Author/Editor: Sebastian Edwards, Simon Johnson, and David N. Weil, editors Volume Publisher: University of Chicago Press Volume ISBNs: 978-0-226-31622-X (cloth) Volume URL: http://www.nber.org/books/afri14-1 Conference Dates: December 11–12, 2009; July 18–20, 2010; August 3–5, 2011 Publication Date: September 2016 Chapter Title: New Tools for the Analysis of Political Power in Africa Chapter Author(s): Ilia Rainer, Francesco Trebbi Chapter URL: http://www.nber.org/chapters/c13390 Chapter pages in book: (p. 145 – 212) 5 New Tools for the Analysis of Political Power in Africa Ilia Rainer and Francesco Trebbi 5.1 Introduction The study of autocratic and weakly institutionalized regimes has long been plagued by scarcity of reliable information useful for furthering their understanding (Tullock 1987). Lewis (1978, 622) appropriately states that “It is more difficult to study dictatorships than democracies because the internal politics of the former are deliberately hidden from the public view.” This chapter identifies in the ethnic composition of the executive branch an important and systematic source of information on the dynamics of power sharing within a sample of fifteen sub-Saharan African countries. Since in- dependence from European colonization, Benin, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia,1 Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Kenya, and Uganda have all experienced widely different political dynamics and often deep political crises.
    [Show full text]