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With about three months to the December 7 polls, the political stage is set for a fierce contest among the political parties for the highest office of the land, the Presidency. Five political parties have so far elected their flag-bearers for the 2012 polls, but it is only the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the dominant opposition party, which has gone ahead to elect its running mate. The two most touted political parties � the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the NPP � have their flag-bearers in the persons of President John Dramani Mahama and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo respectively. The NPP has gone further to select Dr Mahamudu Bawumia as the running mate for Nana Akufo-Addo. Although, President Mahama�s Vice-President, Mr Kwesi Amissah Arthur, is highly tipped to be selected as his running mate for the 2012 polls, that decision is yet to be made. The Progressive People�s Party (PPP) for its part has Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom as the flag-bearer, while the Convention People�s Party (CPP) has Dr Michael Abu Sakara Foster as its flag bearer. It would be recalled that until last December, Dr Nduom had been aspiring for the CPP flagbearership, which he won in 2008 and had Dr Abu Sakara as his running mate. But differences in leadership style with Samia Nkrumah, the chairperson of the CPP, compelled Dr Nduom to quit and form the PPP. Another party which has elected its flag-bearer in the person of Mr Hassan Ayariga is the People�s National Convention (PNC). All the presidential aspirants come onto the political arena with some level of integrity, all confident of making an impressive showing and ultimately win the December 7, Elections.. While President Mahama is bubbling with youthful enthusiasm, has incumbency advantage and has charged his party to disseminate the good works of the NDC party over the almost four years in government, Nana Akufo-Addo of the NPP is upbeat as his policy of free and quality senior high school for all, seem to be catching on. He also prides himself as an experienced politician with over 30 years in the political wilderness. Dr Nduom on his part has pledged to conduct a campaign to prove that he has the competence and ability to offer solutions to the nation�s numerous problems. He also promises a quality education policy including free, compulsory and continuous education from kindergarten to senior high school. Furthermore, Dr Nduom has thrown a challenge to all the presidential aspirants to introduce amendments to the 1992 Constitution that will make three critical changes for progress in Ghana. These are to prohibit Members of Parliament from being appointed as Ministers of State, to return power to the people for all Ghanaians to directly elect their district, municipal and metropolitan chief executives without any interference from the President and to strengthen the office of the Attorney General by separating it from the Ministry of Justice. He will also make available to the public, asset declarations, income tax returns, health records and sources of campaign funding before the December 7 elections. Dr Abu Sakara, for his part is pledging �making Ghana work again�. The idea is to invest in the human capital, transform the economy into an industrialised one, and activate the spirit of self reliance for accelerated socio-economic growth. Hassan Ayariga is also touting his youthfulness, and aims at totally transforming the entire country using education, agriculture and information and communication technology. He believes in the capability of the youth and that this is the time to exploit the potentials of the Ghanaian youth in national development efforts. This year�s polls, no doubt, will be a referendum on the socio-economic performance of the NDC under the Mills-Mahama, now Mahama-Amissah Arthur and the NDC administration over the last four years or a poll on which of the opposition parties offer a credible alternative. The CPP and the NPP have launched their manifestoes for the 2012 polls. The CPP, which was the first political party to launch its abridged version manifesto under the title �Ghana Must Work Again. . . Yabre� , highlights social transformation, sustainable economy, social justice, prudent management of the oil and gas economy, agriculture, rural transformation and fight against corruption. It also talks about housing policy and urban development, youth development and health and sanitation. In the manifesto of the NPP, the party spells out its intentions, opinions, objectives and motives to transform the country when offered the opportunity in the December 2012 general election. The manifesto, titled: �Transforming Lives, Transforming Ghana: Building a Free, Fair and Prosperous Society�, is captured in a 116-page document. It features six chapters, offering specific details of almost all the aspects of society that the party hope to transform from good governance, education, health, foreign policy, infrastructural development, housing, security, among others. The NDC is already implementing its 2008 manifesto which may only be reviewed for the purposes of the 2012 polls. The party touts its achievements in the areas of education, where it has established two universities in the Volta and Brong Ahafo regions, eliminated many schools under trees, increased the capitation grant and provided laptops for schools, as well as supplying free exercise books and school uniforms. On infrastructural development, it mentions roads across the length and breadth of the country and believes it has done equally well at the economic front where inflation has been reduced to single digit, in the health and agriculture sectors, among others. The PPP will not launch an official manifesto for the 2012 polls, but has already developed what it calls the �PPP Political Platform� with a campaign message �Agenda For Change�. Among others, it aims at creating a just and disciplined society, improving performance of government, giving power to the people for development, and strengthening Parliament to perform its legislative duties effectively, among others. It would also provide energy for industrialisation and rapid development, attack crime, the drug trade and corruption and empower the Diaspora, as well as create jobs for Ghanaians. The PNC has given an assurance that its manifesto, which is in an advanced stage of completion, will be launched soon. According to Electoral Commission (EC) records, there are 23 registered political parties including the Great Consolidated Popular Party, United Ghana Movement, Independent People�s Party, United Front Party, Ghana National Party and the United Renaissance Party. Others are Ghana Democratic Republic Party, Ghana Front Party, Reformed Patriotic Democrats, New Vision, and United Love Party. A new political party, the National Democratic Party (NDP), which received its provisional certificate from the EC two weeks ago, is already making huge airwaves. Upon receiving its final certificate from the EC, the party, which is speculated to have some links with the Rawlingses, is also expected to charge the political atmosphere with its message of doing things differently from all others. While it looks like this year�s polls could be a repeat performance of the 2008 experience where the victor won by a narrow margin of less than one per cent, once again the NDC and the NPP have emerged the front runners but the PPP, CPP and the PNC are all geared up confidently to give the two celebrated parties a run for their money. Some have described the December polls as a make or break that will largely be fought on ideas and issues. A National Commission for Civic Education national survey revealed that the Ghanaian electorate regard honesty and integrity as qualities required from a leader in the forthcoming elections. The Afro Barometer survey also mentioned in a survey that Ghanaians were poorer now than in 2008. Most Ghanaians think their living conditions were bad according to the survey. The highlights of the Afro Barometer report was conducted from May to June this year. Explaining the findings of the survey, Afro Barometer project coordinator for Anglophone countries, Daniel Armah Attoh, said the release was expected to inform policy decision in the areas of concern � education, health and unemployment. �The majority of Ghanaians assess their personal living conditions as very bad or bad. Looking at the trend from 2002 to 2012 you see the dip in the number of Ghanaians describing their living conditions as very bad and bad.� ��However from 2008 to 2012 there has been a decline in the number describing their conditions as very good, that is from 42 per cent to 36 per cent. �76 per cent, however, believe they will be able to solve their problems in the next five years,� the survey report further indicated.