Advertisements

Former President Jerry John Rawlings

Undoubtedly,
Ghana’s military-engineered 4th Republic Constitution is unceasingly
crying for crash reforms or amendments that will reflect the contemporary meaning
and the essence of the rule of law consistent with multiparty democracy.
Honestly, no Ghanaian living today can make effective case for an urgent need
to amend this country’s constitution than former President JJ Rawlings.

Remember,
he torpedoed a democratically-written constitution, but now he appears to be a transfigured
advocate of a “superior” democratic constitution, and “who born some of us by
mistake” to second guess the former coup-plotter’s sincerity. 

Advertisements

For
many of us who have been long-time critics and haven’t hidden our mortal
dislike for the political ideologies of Mr. Rawlings—a former
military-dictator-turned-multiparty ruler—it may come as a bit surprise to some
that this present writer is on the side of the recent suggestion by the ex-military
authoritarian. The political reality pertaining to Ghana’s present democratic
experiment is that whether we admit or not the former (P)NDC leader Mr. John J.
Rawlings “owns” the 4th Republic Constitution. So let us call Mr.
Rawlings’ bluff and put everything in the Constitution on the chopping board to
explore ways to make it reflective of utilitarian body of document.

From
the “culture of silence era” in the late 1980s up to the time the ban on party
politics was lifted in 1992, a bunch of fearless Ghanaians at the time,
including this writer, defied the threats of jail time and possible torture
while consistently raising our disapproval against this very constitution.
Taking inspiration from brave writers such as the Rt. Rev. Dr. Samuel Asante-Antwi,
the late(s) Prof. Adu-Boahen, Atakora-Gyimah, Lawyer Obeng Manu and many
others, as a young high school student just completed Sixth-Form (A-Level)
education in Kumasi, I also began writing a series of scathing media articles
regarding Rawlings’ dictatorial regime.

In
those days, the “Pioneer” and “Statesman” were some of the few newspapers bold
enough to feature dissenting viewpoints against Rawlings’ “one-man government”
plus his newly-written fourth republic constitution. Soon after the NPP’s “Stolen
Verdict” episode in the 1992 involving the so-called multiparty elections
supposedly won by Mr. Rawlings, I left the shores of the motherland
disappointed for the States, having fought against P/NDC’s reign of terror in
my very early twenties.

The
preceding historical context is to underscore the fact that all along some of
us have had eternal reservations for this 4th Republic Constitution,
because we knew it was written by Mr. Rawlings in office and for Rawlings out
of office. His inputs and knowledge of the constitution are so profound that he
has matchless understanding of the built-in fallacies/biases of this
constitution. To say the least, it can’t be understated that the Constitution
was written under the direct influence of the then junta regime of Flt. Lt.
Rawlings with the overall objective to serve the whims and fancies of his
incoming civilian administration in 1993. 

When
the 258-member Consultative Assembly tasked to draft the 4th republic
constitution presented its final product to then Chairman Rawlings’ (P)NDC
dictatorship, there was no any objection or revision made to the document. It
was pushed through a hastily organized referendum and the supine state-run
media fawningly reported that about “92% Ghanaians approved” the Constitution.

This
is suggestive that every serious-minded Ghanaian and believers of true
multiparty governance needs to pay attention to Mr. Rawlings’ clarion call for
amendments of the Fourth Republic Constitution he immensely helped put together
to support his sociopolitical agenda. Essentially, former President Rawlings’
exhortation for constitutional amendments should wisely remind us of the
proverbial “frog that emerges from a body of water with the news of the death
of the dreaded crocodile.” Even if the “frog’s” version of the sequence of
events is not too credible, the natural response is to give him the benefit of
the doubt because the frog lives in the same water with that giant reptile.
After all, Mr. Rawlings is the “chief architect” of the Constitution under
discussion. Obviously, he doesn’t need that “protection” any longer.  

Here
is the former P/NDC leader in a sober admission of the severe flaws of the Constitution
he assembled some people to write for him over two decades ago: “Over the years
the indemnity clauses have emboldened certain characters to abuse their offices
and profit themselves. The Constitution of the Fourth Republic was created by
us, for us and to serve us, and in light of the 25 years, there is an
unqualified need to reform or rewrite our current constitution. An urgent
constituent assembly ought to be established with the necessary powers to
rewrite the constitution” (graphic.com.gh; June 4, 2019). 

Surely,
it’s fair game and within one’s prerogative rights to question the timing or
why it takes all these long years for the former leader of the AFRC and (P)NDC
to call for “an urgent constituent assembly” to try to amend the 4th
republic constitution now. Nonetheless, if there is any intrinsic value of the
amendment’s question/message, it does not diminish because of the messenger—in
this case Mr. Rawlings who happens to be the bona fide beneficiary of the said
constitution. Here again, it’s not about Mr. Rawlings and whatever ego trip he
is on that should be the focus; rather, it’s about this nation’s constitutional
advancement.

The
ex-military/civilian president’s call for amendment has less to do with
hypocrisy than it is about highlighting issues of critical importance. Keep in
mind the “Indemnity Clauses” were “backdoor postscripts” to the Constitution
that were not subject to rigorous debate by the consultative assembly. Mr.
Jerry Rawlings knows full well the constitution is “one-person-centered” and it
cedes too much power to the executive side (for then Executive President
Rawlings) as opposed to the legislative and judicial arms of the government. It
is ironic, though, that many of the country’s MPs worry about privileges, but
the current Parliament itself is relatively spineless, a development that does not
bide well for a boisterous multiparty culture. 

Mr.
Rawlings is correct; this constitution seems to have empowered some politicians
to hide under some abstract concepts of “privileges and immunities” not to be
held accountable to the people. Does anyone wonder why the Special Prosecutor,
Mr. Martin Amidu, seems to be having hard time prosecuting the corrupt
officials? Your guess here is as good as mine.

In
any event, parliamentary/legislative immunities are primarily meant for
deliberative functions of the MPs and not for the insulation against criminal
prosecution and the due process of the law. The Bawku Central MP Mr. Mahama Ayariga’s self-serving
immunity argument is one of the reasons the 4th republic
constitution needs critical reappraisal more than ever!

Bernard Asubonteng is a US-based sociopolitical analyst

By Bernard Asubonteng

The post Constitutional Reforms: Rawlings Is The ‘Proverbial Frog From The Pond’ appeared first on DailyGuide Network.

Advertisements
error

Enjoy this blog? Please spread the word :)

Verified by MonsterInsights