Review of constitution should not start and end in Parliament – Prof. Atuguba
In January 2010, the Constitution Review Commission, chaired by Professor Albert Kodzo Fiadjoe was set up to consult with the people of Ghana on the operation of the 1992 Constitution and on any changes that need to be made to the Constitution.
Professor Raymond Atuguba, the Dean of the School of Law at the University of Ghana in adding his voice to current calls for constitutional amendment, says the review process ought to be initiated by the executive.
He was particularly responding to the supposed position of President Akufo-Addo, where he said he does not believe the revision of the constitution is the work of the president of the Republic.
“Constitutionally, this is a wrong position to take because Article 76 of our constitution, mandates the Cabinet of the Republic, chaired by the President, to assist the President in the determination of the general policy of the government. Proposals for the review of our constitution are a matter of general policy and those proposals must emanate from the President assisted by his Cabinet. Whilst we may not like the current arrangement, this is what is in place now constitutionally,” Prof. Atuguba explained.
He has said Parliament for many reasons cannot start processes for a review of the constitution.
One of such he says is that per the current constitution, Parliament cannot initiate a Constitutional Amendment Bill.
“However you design it, such a bill, if it touches the key constitutional challenges of our time, as it should, would create huge charges on the Consolidated Fund, a scenario that is constitutionally decried in Article 108 of our constitution.”
He also justified his reasons by stating that separation of powers demands that both the initiator and accessor of a constitutional amendment proposal be separate organs of government.
In addition, he said the position of the President stands contrary to a 2015 Supreme Court decision in Steven Kweku Asare vs Attorney-General, “which stated that the President of the Republic has full powers to initiate a process of constitution review through the mechanism of a commission of enquiry.”
Furthermore, he has distinctly described the nature of the introduction of the anti-gay bill as a perfect example of why the process of a constitutional review should not be initiated by legislators.
He was speaking at the annual Founders week celebration of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, which is on the theme, ‘The 1992 Constitution: Fitness for Purpose in the 21st Century.
Professor Atuguba however noted that the Constitutional Review Commission’s (CRC) report held all the answers to the calls for constitutional reforms, describing the report as “an autobiography of the nation that cannot be extinguished no matter how hard we try.”
He is not the only one to allude to the Constitutional Review Commission’s report.
The Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), Dr. Emmanuel Akwetey, has more than once urged the government to revisit recommendations made by the CRC.
In January 2010, the Constitution Review Commission, chaired by Professor Albert Kodzo Fiadjoe was set up to consult with the people of Ghana on the operation of the 1992 Constitution and on any changes that need to be made to the Constitution. The Commission was also tasked to present a draft bill for the amendment of the Constitution in the event that any changes are warranted.
