President of the Chamber for Local Governance (CHALOG), Richard Fiadomor, has identified political interference as the biggest challenge confronting local governance in Ghana, warning that the situation continues to undermine decentralisation and effective service delivery.
According to him, excessive control from the centre has denied Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies the autonomy needed to execute projects and respond effectively to the needs of their communities.
Speaking on News Digest on CitiFm on Saturday, May 5, he said, although funds are released to the assemblies through the District Assemblies Common Fund, decisions on how resources are utilised are often dictated from Accra.
He argued that this practice defeats the core purpose of decentralisation, citing instances where contracts for local projects such as school buildings and furniture procurement are awarded centrally instead of allowing assemblies to engage contractors within their jurisdictions.
“We have a situation whereby somebody sits in Accra and wants to remote-control everything. When some of these things happen, it defeats the very purpose of decentralisation. That is the challenge we have: political interference,” he stated.
Mr Fiadomor further noted that while assembly members continue to play vital roles in representing their electoral areas, some district assemblies have failed to adequately engage communities, affecting public confidence in local governance.
He stressed that addressing structural challenges and granting assemblies greater operational independence will be critical to strengthening grassroots development across the country.
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