In accordance with article 76(1)of the 1992 constitution, Ghana Parliament has approved the appointment of six Ministerial nominees presented by the appointment Committee on Friday 25th March,2023.

The ruling NPP government under the leadership of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is super excited with the approval but the leading opposition party NDC seems to have different views and opinions on the secret voting pattern leading to the unanimous decision for all the six ministerial nominees.

Information available quoted by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Bagbin indicated that, out of 275 members of Parliament,272 successful cast their ballots with 3 absentees. Thus, both the majority and minority have 136 votes apiece for the secret votes.

After hours of delay regarding the voting process, the final results declared by the Speaker of Parliament favoured all the six ministerial nominees to the satisfaction of the ruling NPP government but to the dissatisfaction of the leading opposition party NDC.

It's imperative for all active politicians to acknowledge and appreciate the real deal in contemporary politics underpinned by political communication and political marketing for their own good regardless of their individual or collective political responsibilities.

All must be aware that politics is a game of mischief and uncertainty.

I find it difficult to phantom how some political thinkers and analysts have concluded that all NPP parliamentarians voted for their ministerial nominees and the additional numbers to their 136 members came from NDC parliamentarians. I humbly stand to be corrected.

This secret voting in Parliament should remind you of how former MP for Nadowli Kaleo and now Speaker of the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic, Alban Sumana Bagbin polled 138 votes against his predecessor Prof. Mike Ocquaye's 136 votes with just one Legislator failing to vote.

Undoubtedly, the current Speaker of Parliament makes history for being the first Speaker of Parliament who was not solely selected by the governing party.

I must though respect the feelings and anxiety of members of the NDC including former President John Dramani Mahama. However, it's important to link what happened in Parliament to political communication and political marketing.

Both NPP and NDC can use what happened regarding the secret voting pattern in Parliament to restructure their political communication and political marketing strategies ahead of 2024 general elections to all intents and purposes.

My observations on some comments disseminated around about the behaviour of some NDC parliamentarians on the secret voting pattern and described them as disloyal party members, disappointing members of the party with selfishness and greediness as their hallmarks kept me thinking.

David L. Swanson and Dan Nimmo define Political Communication as the strategic use of communication to influence public knowledge, belief and action on political matters.

You must simply come to think about the kind of effective political communication and relationship strategies Alban Sumana Bagbin adopted to have won him the Speaker of Parliament seat and politically transfer same ideology to what happened Friday 24th March,2023 in Parliament.

National Democratic Congress(NDC)must instead take a second look at the reasons why they requested the President to cut down the size of his government and empower their political communication strategy by highlighting the role of persuasion in political discourse.

New Patrotic Party(NPP)must realise the herculean task ahead of the party considering the current economic situation in the country and why the President failed to listen to the suggestion of reducing the number of his appointees to offer his party an instatenous damage control strategy.

With the advent of new media,the very structure of political communication involves a decision between movers and shakers at the top and bystanders at the bottom.

Digital Media undoubtedly has become a more effective political marketing tool in our contemporary politics.

What happened in Parliament can easily be connected to political marketing because there has been a major paradym shift from the traditional or mainstream media landscape to social media platforms for those seeking for political information.

There are countless critical functions of political marketing but for the sake of this discourse with my readers,I will like to touch on a few of them:

1.Product function:

The NDC must instatenously realise that NPP is already aware that their political marketing strategy is under restructuring and so your product "CUT THE SIZE OF YOUR MINISTERS" must be elaborated with analytical skills to convince the public.

2.New Management Function:

The NDC must not take things for granted especially with the change of leadership in Parliament and the national executives. As the leading opposition party you need to reconsider your mode of leadership engagements especially at this crucial period.

3.Communication Function:

The National Democratic Congress(NDC) must reconsider its communication strategies any time party members are encountered with sensitive issues. They need qualified political commentators and Analysts to help reshape their political engagements with party members and the public.

Sorry to say that some of the "so called" political communicators in Ghana are noise makers let alone political marketers.

4.Internal cohesion management function:

Both NDC and NPP leadership in Parliament and at their various national offices must revise their notes on real political leadership devoid of animosity, disunity,
individualism, hatred, power-play, greediness and hypocrisy.

Under political marketing, it's important as a political party to differentiate between electoral market and government market to help you solidify your political agenda and game plan.

What happened in Ghana Parliament is not something extraordinary because developed Democratic nations such as the United States and the United Kingdom have witnessed and seen countless of such or worse situations.

Time to readjust your political communication and political marketing framework is now, to help reshape the thoughts and aspirations of internal party members and the public.

Exposing NDC members who may have voted for the six ministerial nominees presented by the appointment committee is a nonstarter and recipe for irreparable damages for NDC underpinned by political communication and political marketing. Take it from me.

It's imperative to condemn all parliamentarians who published their voting pattern in the public domain. Your actions are illogical considering the rules governing secret voting.

It must be understood that members of parliament from different political parties are not enemies but friends who eat and do certain things together for the betterment of the nation Ghana, their constituencies and relationships. Their public utterances on their political parties and opponents cannot always be used as caveat to their ultimate social and political decisions.

The ball is squarely in the court of both the NDC and NPP to actualize their game plan or activate their damage control strategy underpinned by political communication and political marketing because what happened in Parliament on Friday 24th March,2023 was a clear manifestation of effective political communication and marketing as well as cordial polical relationship and not political disloyalty or greediness.

Politics is about proactive leadership, effective communication and effective relationship.

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. —John Maxwell