An economist and a stalwart of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Kwame Pianim, has said Ghana does not need a new constitution.
He said a few amendments, if done to aspects of the current 1992 constitution that are considered problematic, can make it better and work for all Ghanaians as expected.
Mr Piainim indicated that the Members of Parliament have a role to play in dealing with the weakness of the constitution .
He said this during the launch of the John Evans Atta Mills Memorial Heritage at the Cedi Conference Centre at the University of Ghana on February 1 2022, under the theme: “The man John Evans Atta Mills – 10 years on.
“I do not believe that those who are saying , we need a new constitution. The constitution we have , with a few judicial adjudications can be brought to light, a few changes.
“We don’t need to overhaul or get a new constitution. What is wrong with the constitution are us Ghanaians . The president has too much powers but the president doesn’t pass laws.
“There are 275 MPs sitting there , they are supposed to approve the ministers not the president. So we say yes they are the Ministers, we have the Council of state who are supposed to make certain appointments in consultation with or on the advise of. I don’t know what documents they say the president should bring when it is in consultation with them or on the advise of. So it is not the president who has too muchg powers, it is us to stand up and be courageous to say Mr President this persons you want to occupy this position is not good enough , they are not experienced enough.
Some Ghanaians including members of the Economic Fighters League , have said the current constitution of Ghana is to blame for what they describe as, rot, suffering and ill-governance being experienced in the country, which according to them, gives life to retrogression and discrimination.
In a statement to mark Constitution Day, the Fighters said the 1992 Constitution was deliberately drafted, gazetted and adopted just to benefit a few elites.
The Fighters have been at the forefront of the demand for a new constitution saying the current one has put Ghanaians through 30 years of retrogressive governance, constitutional dictatorship, poverty and underdevelopment.
To buttress their demands, the Fighters said every constitution must be the foundation upon which freedoms are built which they say is unfortunately missing in Ghana’s constitution.
This could be seen in the case of the people of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe (SALL), who are currently denied parliamentary representation courtesy manipulations of the Constitution.
“Constitutions are the foundations upon which democratic countries are built. They are supposed to guard against oppression and be the source of hope for the less privileged. Unfortunately, we are being governed with a constitution that serves the interest of the few to the detriment of the majority.”
“For few years now, the Economic Fighters League has made it our foremost agenda to push for the abolishment of the 1992 Sakawa constitution because of our conviction that we cannot have a bad constitution and expect a good society.”
The statement further said it is a great joy to see that “Ghanaians are getting increasingly aware that their enemy is the 1992 Constitution” after years of consistent advocacy and that the current Constitution “must die if we must live.”
The Fighters are demanding and willing to work with individuals or organisations for a new constitution that will cut down on the size of government and government expenditure, scrape Article 71 holders benefits and emoluments, reduce the appointing powers of the president and so many other cankers they say are to blame for the underdevelopment in the country.
“Due to the urgency of the need for a New Constitution, we have decided to form a coalition of willing individuals and organizations to challenge the NPP/NDC in 2024 elections who continue to benefit from the 1992 Constitution and are hellbent on protecting it.
“This will enable us to fight the battle for New Constitution on two fronts in a coordinated fashion.”
By Laud Nartey|3news.com|Ghana