The full beauty and splendor of Ghana’s democracy was on display as President Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo and his Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia affirm their oath to the office they have been elected. The highlight of the day came in the president’s inaugural address which outlines bold economic ideas and constitutional reforms to tackle the challenges that militate Ghana’s quest to develop. The future appears promising given the president’s commitment to wide-ranging reforms to deepen democracy, the rule of law and honest accounting to the Ghanaian people.
Of importance in the president’s bold reform agenda is the call to free parliament from the strings of the executive branch or true separation of powers. The call reinforces faith in the new president’s pledge to work in the best interest of the people. Real separation of power as the president calls for, means sharing power equally with parliament and the judiciary.
By proactively, pursuing power sharing, Akufo Addo sacrifices the quintessential executive leverage that his predecessors enjoyed, to make government responsible and accountable to the people. When achieved, parliament would be able to exercise real oversight or hold the executive branch in check for instance, on fiscal policy issues. There is no doubt that the absolute power of the executive, the ability to ply both parliament and the judiciary to its ends account for much of the fiscal irresponsibility, waste and corruption that plagues Ghana.
Like parliament, separation of power would free the courts to become the enterprise of justice it was designed to be, and work fairly for all Ghanaians, wealthy or poor. For the judiciary to inspire confidence as a fair arbiter of disputes as the president charges, utter independence from the executive is inevitable. Much like parliament, the judiciary appears to be tied somewhat to the executive branch, an impediment to universal equality before the law. The evidence of judiciary dependence accounts for the uncomfortable delay of justice, special treatment and the lack of serious enforcement of rulings affecting individuals affiliated with the government of the day.
In addition, President Akufo Addo’s calls for more decentralization lines with his expressed idea for broader citizen engagement and responsibility in the governance of the country. In demonstrating his faith in Ghana, the president calls for confidence in the good judgment and wisdom of the Ghanaian people. It is evident that the president has enduring faith in the Ghanaian people. Hence, he charges us to become active citizens, and not mere spectators on the margins.
To digress, I find it is disappointing and sad that some have elected to ignore the development and unifying potential of the President’s call for active citizen participation, to harp on the negligible attribution error which has been promptly acknowledged. What these detractors fail to see which reflect a lack of attention and mischief on their part, is the fact that, the theme of active and responsible citizenship is a common thread that runs through the inaugural address.
There are many other salient issues raised in the president’s speech that makes it an outstanding first art of real change to come. One hopes that forward-looking Ghanaians especially those interested in public policy and true leadership must welcome the president’s commitment to deepening democracy and the rule of law, as an invitation to all citizens to work with his administration to advance socio-economic and political development. At minimum, if all President Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo achieves is comprehensive constitutional reform, he would have set Ghana on an irreversible path to sustained growth and development. For in words of Vice President Al Gore, “for a free country to continue thriving, there have to be regular reforms.”
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