The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly has failed to elect a presiding member after two rounds of voting, leaving the city’s local legislature temporarily without a key office holder.
Sixty-six assembly members cast their ballots on Thursday at the Prempeh Assembly Hall in Kumasi. Incumbent Patrick Kwame Frimpong secured 35 votes in the first round, while his challenger, Ernest Baffour Ofori, obtained 24.
In the second round, Mr Frimpong the incumbent Presiding Member (PM) increased his tally to 36 votes, with Mr Baffour Ofori receiving 23. However, neither candidate met the two-thirds majority required under Ghana’s local governance laws to be elected.
Two other aspirants, Isham Alhassan and Kwame Agyemang, withdrew from the race ahead of the vote. The election was supervised by the Electoral Commission of Ghana.
Under the law, the assembly is expected to reconvene within 10 days to hold another vote.
The Richard Ofori Agyemang Boadi Mayor of Kumasi said he was not surprised by the outcome, noting that both candidates command significant support within the assembly.
“If you look at the numbers, it tells you that both members have the support of a chunk of the assembly,” he said, adding that further consultations would be necessary to break the impasse.
He acknowledged that the absence of a presiding member could delay certain decisions that require approval by the executive committee or the general assembly.
“There are projects that we have to bring before the General Assembly so we can proceed,” he said. “With this development, those cannot be done.”
However, he stressed that ongoing development projects would not be halted, as the assembly’s budget and work plans have already been approved.
“The assembly is not going to suffer as far as the development of Kumasi is concerned,” he said.
The KMA Chief Executive also emphasised that he would remain neutral in the contest.
“I am only a voter. I don’t have any role to play,” he said. “I have tried as much as possible to stay neutral and not be on anybody’s side.”
Some assembly members described the outcome as unfortunate but expressed optimism that a presiding member would be elected at the next meeting.
By law, metropolitan assemblies in Ghana must hold a specified number of meetings each year, a requirement that may be affected if the stalemate persists.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
