#NewConstitutionNow campaign is part of a larger nationwide push for inclusive governance through a new Constitution.

Ghana has been touted internationally as the beacon of democracy in West Africa. The country has successfully held eight (8) elections since the promulgation of the current constitution in 1993. This electoral success has been used as a yardstick to rate the country high in terms of democratic consolidation. However, what we have is merely a giant Public Relations (PR) democracy, which does not go beyond the holding of elections every four years.

On the contrary, elections have masked the real Ghana from the rest of the world and prevented the building of a true inclusive democracy. There cannot be said to be democracy when the people have no power; the economic dividends only accrue to a few elite and their corporate friends whilst the majority wallow in poverty; the President wields so much power that nothing happens without him and no one can hold him accountable; women who constitute majority of the population continue to be marginalized and excluded by design; etc. These and many more are all ills of the current dispensation that have been brought about by the implementation of the 1992 constitution.

To make fundamental changes is akin to preventing the country from degenerating into violence, which as history shows will be the natural reaction to prolonged oppression. A fundamental change can only be done by looking at the very roots of the system.

Why new constitution?

1. The 1992 Constitution gives excessive power to the executive.

   The President literally appoints everybody that matters in the system, so everybody works to please him. Too much power in the hands of one person is dangerous.

2. The 1992 Constitution has failed to guarantee consistent people-centred development.

   Ghanaians need a long-term development plan with a national vision, that is binding on all governments regardless of which party is in power. The plan should include all aspects of national life and incorporate views and ideas from every Ghanaian – rich and poor, young and old. Article 86 of the 1992 Constitution establishes the National Development Planning Commission, which makes short-term plans, not binding on successive governments and subject to partisan political direction.

3. The 1992 Constitution curtails fair distribution of the wealth of the nation by creating a special class of people who take huge salaries and are entitled to multiple ex-gratias.

   Article 71 of the constitution creates a special class of public servants made of the Executive, Parliament, Judiciary and heads of other bodies. This class of people are given ex-gratia every four years based on recommendations of a committee set up by each sitting President under article 71 of the constitution.

4. The 1992 Constitution is skewed against the youth.

   The constitution bars young people from becoming President. Article 62 (b) says that only a person who is 40 years or above can become President of Ghana. This is discriminatory against the young people of the country who constitute majority in the population. In fact, according to the Ghana Statistical Service 2021 Population and Housing Census, 75% of Ghana’s population is 35 years or below. In the whole constitution, the word “youth” is not even mentioned, not even once.

5. The 1992 Constitution makes Parliament a rubber stamp.

   The constitution in Article 78 requires the President to appoint a majority of ministers from Parliament. Due to this, no member of the President’s party in Parliament will have the courage to disagree with the executive. Once parliamentarians are appointed ministers, it has several effects:

   1. they become part of the executive and are unable to hold the executive (which they are part of) accountable?
   2. They have no time for parliamentary work. So the Constitution set up Parliament to be a check on the Executive while at the same time put provisions inside that makes that duty impossible.

6. The 1992 Constitution created a judiciary that largely serves the upper class.

   The Judiciary is at the mercy of the executive, which is at the top of the upper-class power structure. Article 144 puts the judiciary at the mercy of the President. Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of that article provide that the President should appoint the Chief Justice, Justices of the Supreme Court, Appeals Court, High Court, and heads of Regional Tribunals.

7. The 1992 Constitution created exclusionary governance.

   The winner-takes-all syndrome has been created by the 1992 sakawa constitution. It prevents inclusion and national cohesion and promotes divisiveness and potential for conflict. The first-past-the-post electoral system excludes women, the PWDs and minority groups from governance.

8. The 1992 Constitution is not built on Pan-African orientation.

   The Constitution has no contemplation of the burning imperative for African unity. Nor does it recognize the oneness of Africa.

9. The 1992 Constitution has failed to ensure gender equality in governance and decision making.

   With the first-past-the-post electoral system ingrained in the governance system created by the Constitution, fairness in representation in governance and decision-making can only be a mirage.

10. The 1992 Constitution guarantees human rights and fundamental freedoms on paper but their realization remains a problem.

    On paper, human rights are guaranteed but in practice, their realization is based on the whims and caprices of the powerful class.