Executive Director of RISE-Ghana, Awal Ahmed Kariama, has called for proposed amendments to Ghana’s 1992 Constitution to be presented separately to voters rather than bundled into a single Yes or No referendum question.
He said separating the proposals would allow Ghanaians to consider the individual issues and make decisions on each rather than being required to accept or reject several proposed changes together.
Mr Kariama made the call during a sensitisation engagement on Ghana’s constitutional review process, where participants were taken through recommendations of the Constitution Review Committee, the work of the Constitution Review Implementation Committee and the government’s response to proposed reforms.
He said the Civil Society Platform for Constitutional Reforms was working to promote broader citizen participation in the process and ensure that the eventual reforms reflect the views and interests of Ghanaians.
According to him, although the Platform supports some of the proposed reforms, it has concerns about others and wants citizens to have sufficient information and opportunity to participate in discussions before any referendum.
One of its major concerns, he said, was how questions on proposed constitutional amendments would eventually be presented to voters.
Mr Kariama said individual proposals should be separated instead of being lumped together into a single question requiring voters to vote Yes or No to several reforms at once.
Mr Kariama said the Platform was also opposed to a proposal that would allow the government or President to nominate five candidates to contest local-level elections at Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies.
He argued that eligible Ghanaians should have equal opportunity to contest local-level elections and said the process should encourage greater participation by women.
The Platform also wants local-level elections to remain non-partisan.
Mr Kariama further called for stronger safeguards for independent constitutional bodies, including the Electoral Commission, to enable them to perform their functions without undue interference.
He said such institutions should have clearly defined mandates, security of tenure and dedicated funding to strengthen their independence.
The Platform is also proposing changes to the Council of State, including extending the tenure of members beyond the lifespan of the administration under which they are appointed.
It also wants more members of the Council of State to be elected rather than appointed by the government.
On local government financing, Mr Kariama said the Platform supports increasing the District Assemblies Common Fund from five per cent to 10 per cent.
It is also calling for a review of the portion of the Common Fund allocated to Members of Parliament, including clearer rules on its purpose and use.
According to Mr Kariama, resources intended for district assemblies should be made available to the assemblies to finance development at the local level.
He called on civil society organisations, journalists and other stakeholders to intensify public education on the constitutional review process so citizens understand the proposals before being required to make decisions on them.
Mr Kariama said meaningful constitutional reform required broad participation and should reflect the interests and aspirations of citizens rather than being limited to government and political actors.
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