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It is clear to say that the results of the general elections of this year 2020, specifically the parliamentary ones, have unfolded several surprises. Such surprises include the loss of top parliamentary seats, leading to a state of dilemma whether the New Patriotic Party (NPP) or the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has a majority in Ghana’s Eighth Parliament, yet to be formed.
In my previous article on the topic: “Voting patterns must change, lest we put Ghana in the wrong hands,” I asked Ghanaians to give a lot of thought to who to vote for in the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections.
This is because, in recent times, some voters vote regardless of the achievements and record of achievements of their political party. So, if it’s NPP or NDC they support, then it’s NPP or NDC for life.
Interestingly, these types of voters (ideologues) are the majority in our voting systems.
In this election, the PNP lost more than 20 parliamentary seats to the opposition NDC.
Thus, it has led some parties to accuse the Electoral Commission (EC) of not being fair and of resorting to violence because their candidate was not victorious.
The current ones are the disputes, which emanated from Techiman South in the Bono region, where NDC supporters have alleged that the incumbent government has tried to rig the elections by mixing ballots with fake ballots.
In the Awutu Senya West constituency, a man was shot after he tried to snatch a ballot box from him while EC officials counted the votes.
How did all this happen? Why did the NPP lose the majority of seats to the NDC? What messages are voters saying to politicians (parliamentarians)?
According to a research work by Apaah (2017), it revealed that what appears to be the most dominant determinant of the vote was party identification, as well as the voter’s affection for their parties.
But I bet you don’t, the tables have now turned.
However, if there is any lesson for Members of Parliament (MPs) to learn from this year’s general elections, then it should be that Ghanaians are now decisive about who to represent them in parliament.
It should communicate to them that most Ghanaians are no longer political ideologies in which they vote based on party lines and affiliations.
Members of Parliament must recognize that Ghanaians now know the power they wield and, with the slightest mistake, one can be expelled from parliament.
Parliamentarians need to know that adopting a “skirt and blouse” approach by voters will now be the new normal.
Democracy cannot work if citizens do not vote, on December 7, 2024, Ghanaians will go to the polls again to choose and decide whether a candidate has a job in public office or not.
To conclude, just as there is a quote that says “bad politicians are elected by good people who don’t vote”, the more than 17 million registered Ghanaian voters will also vote for leaders who don’t work, so we don’t have bad politicians. . .
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The writer is a student at the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ).
