News:
May 13, 2025
The Minority in Ghana’s Parliament is raising issues with conspicuous absence of President John Dramani Mahama, Vice President Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang and Rt. Hon Alban Sumana Bagbin at the same time without constitutional mandate to swear in an acting president.
This represents a clear and egregious violation of Article 60 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.
In a statement issued by John Darko, Legal Counsel to the Minority Caucus, he pointed out that, the constitutional provisions on presidential succession are explicit: “Whenever both the President and the Vice President are absent from the country, the Speaker of Parliament must be sworn in to act as President”.
This interpretation has been affirmed by the Supreme Court in the landmark case of Asare v. Attorney General. The Court held that at no point should the nation be left without a constitutionally designated acting head of state; in the absence of both the President and the Vice President, the Speaker must assume that role.
It is a matter of public record that the Speaker of Parliament departed the jurisdiction on 8th May 2025. The President, fully aware of this fact and also aware that his Vice President had traveled earlier to seek medical attention abroad, nonetheless proceeded to leave the country without taking steps to ensure that the Chief Justice administered the oath to the Speaker to act as President mandated by the Constitution.
“Their conduct is not only unconstitutional it is deliberate and calculated. This administration has consistently treated the Constitution as an inconvenience rather than a binding framework. They are emboldened to flout the supreme law of the land because they believe they have succeeded in weakening the Judiciary”
Their continued attacks on the Judiciary and the Chief Justice, both overt and covert have created a climate that undermines judicial independence and threatens the rule of law. It is this very erosion of institutional checks that enables such brazen violations to go unchecked.
The precedent set in Asare v. Attorney General has not been overturned. Thus, the President’s actions and those of his advisors constitute nothing short of a willful and wanton disregard for the Constitution of Ghana.
Again, it is one of the clearest demonstrations yet of this administration’s habitual violations of the supreme law of the land.
The supremacy of the Constitution derives not from its physical form but from our collective commitment to uphold it. As President Barack Obama noted on 10th January 2017: “Our Constitution is a remarkable, beautiful gift. But it’s really just a piece of parchment. It has no power on its own. We, the people, give it power with our participation, and the choices we make. Whether or not we stand up for our freedoms; whether or not we respect and enforce the rule of law…”
These words ring true for us as Ghanaians. Our Constitution, though not without its imperfections, remains the cornerstone of our democracy. It is only through strict adherence to its provisions not selective obedience that we confer upon it the reverence it deserves.
Today, those entrusted with the sacred responsibility of safeguarding our Constitution have failed in their duty. They have chosen to undermine its authority, threatening the democratic gains we have struggled to build. Let them be reminded: Ghana is still a fragile democracy. The progress of our democratic journey is neither guaranteed nor irreversible.
“As the Minority Caucus and in their role as vigilant custodians of the Constitution, we shall continue to expose and resist such violations. We will hold the President and his Vice accountable to their oath of office, which demands fidelity to the Constitution.
Where necessary, we shall invoke the relevant provisions of law to ensure that constitutional breaches do not go unpunished”, the Minority declared.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com