Opposition Parties Trusted More Than Prez Mahama

More Ghanaians trust opposition political parties than they trust President John Mahama, according to the latest Afro Barometer survey published today by the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD). Whereas 45 per cent of Ghanaians say they trust opposition political parties, only 40 per cent said they trust President Mahama. In fact, the President�s trust rating has dropped significantly since he was elected in 2012 by as much as 16 per cent. According to the survey, 56% of Ghanaians trust the Ghana Armed Forces far more than the President. The President�s party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is also one of the least trusted institutions in the country. Only 36% trust the governing party. The Survey sampled opinions of 2400 respondents between May and June 2014 in all the ten regions of the country. The respondents� level of confidence were measured by asking how they trust these institutions: �trust a lot or somewhat�, and �trust a little" or "not at all�. The religious bodies were the most trusted institutions, scoring 63% followed by traditional leaders with 50%. The least trusted institution is the Ghana Revenue Authority 33% with the local government body trailing by 34%. Meanwhile, Project Coordinator of the Afro barometer, Daniel Armah Attoh has admitted on Joy FM�s Top Story that �some of the areas were a bit surprising to me�. Even though more people trusted the opposition parties than the ruling government, the same respondents were divided over which of the two can fight corruption best, he explained. He further noted, the fact that the respondents trusted the army more than the president or ruling party is not indicative that they want military rule. He said in the comprehensive report, about 71% disagreed that the military should come back [to rule] as well as over 80% detesting a one party state. Linda Ofori-Kwafo Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition told Joy News putting more trust in the military than the political parties could have negative implication on Ghana�s democracy. �What do you need from the military that may be you are not getting from these other institutions�it is worrying for our democracy�this is a wakeup call for institutions to show political commitment in what they do,� he said. These, she said, raises a number of unanswered questions on why the institutions are losing people�s confidence.