There is a decline in parliamentary standards; it has been monetized – Asiedu Nketia

Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) chairman, has concurred with the mounting concerns over the deteriorating levels of representation in Ghana’s legislature.

During an interview on Thursday, November 16, on the Citi Breakfast Show, the former General Secretary of the NDC agreed with the general consensus that there has been a discernible change in the way legislative tasks are seen and addressed.

Asiedu Nketia highlighted the shift from the conventional viewpoint that saw parliament as a venue for civic engagement to a modern one in which people saw it as an investment.

“The quality of representation has indeed declined, and it is not just an opinion, there is one survey report which has cited what the speakers have been talking about,” he stated.

Asiedu Nketia highlighted a significant aspect that is contributing to this decrease, namely the detrimental effects of the growing commercialization of politics.

He pointed out that in the past, people were inspired to run for parliament by a sincere desire to help the country.

Nonetheless, he continued, the current situation shows a change, with parliamentary seats being seen as important areas for strategic investment.

“One of the key causes has been the over-monetisation of politics. In the past, people went to parliament out of the passion to serve the nation. Now people go to parliament as a means of investment… some just want a service passport to do their business,” he remarked.

Asiedu Nketia emphasized the necessity of going back to the principles of true public service that once defined Ghana’s parliament and advocated for a concentrated effort to buck this trend.

He did, however, concede that it would be challenging for political parties to put in place requirements that give priority to educational background for candidates running for parliamentary seats.