A Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) is to be established within the next two weeks to begin work on amendments and reforms that need to be effected to the 1992 Constitution, after it has been in operation for the past 16 years. The proposed Commission follows Cabinet’s approval of the constitutional review process and a memorandum on the consultative review submitted by the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, to Cabinet. A government source told the Daily Graphic in Accra that some research work conducted on provisions of the Constitution indicated that there were potentially close to 40 changes that needed to be made to it. The source said a key part of the changes could involve a possible curtailment of “the excessive powers of the Executive President.’ In his State of the Nation Address to Parliament early this year, President John Evans Atta Mills called for a constitutional review conference to debate proposed constitutional amendments in a consensus manner. “We believe also that a National Constitutional Review Conference is the surest way to ensure that our manifesto promises, as well as those of some of the other political parties, which require constitutional amendments see fruition in a consensual manner. “In preparation towards the conference, we shall this year establish a Constitutional Review Committee to collate views on amendment proposals and work towards the conference,” the President had stated. Many experts, government officials, public advocates and commentators, the media and the African Peer Review mechanism (APRM) have recommended that aspects of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana be reviewed. However, other voices have cautioned that the Constitution should be operated for a few more years in order to have a much clearer idea of what a review process will contribute to the nation’s democracy and constitutionalism. Over the years, governance and constitutional experts have identified some areas in the Constitution that need review and that the call for view has been supported by research conducted by governmental and non governmental organisations. The source explained that the purpose of the constitutional review was to undertake an experimental reflection on the operation of the Constitution over the last 16 years and, thereby, identify aspects of it that needed to be retained and further developed, amended or repealed. The proposals, according to the source, sought to determine whether or not the 1992 Constitution should be amended to allow for the tabling and passage of Private Member Bills in parliament and whether or not the position of the Attorney-General should be decoupled from that of the Minister of Justice (Article 88). It said the proposals also called for considering a review of Article 78(2) which did not place a ceiling on the number of ministers a President might appoint, the panel system at the Supreme Court, particularly the power of the Chief Justice to empanel the court for all cases, even for cases involving the Chief Justice as plaintiff or defendant. Additional, the proposals also focused on the absence of a ceiling on the number of judges that might be appointed to the Supreme Court and the Appeal Court under Articles 128(1) and 136(1)(b) of the Constitution. The source said other proposals also called for consideration of the empanelling all members of the Supreme Court to sit on all or key cases in order to ensure finality to litigation and consistency of precedence. Other proposals, according to the source, also sought for a clarification of the public character or otherwise of the chieftaincy institution and whether or not a chief might hold public office (Articles 94 (3) (c) and 276 (2). Further proposals include the review of the death penalty provisions, the possible abolition of the death sentence (Article 3 (3) and 19(2), as well as the review of the Constitution to allow for the election of district chief executives (Articles 243). The source explained that the purpose of the exercise was to remove contradictions and ambiguities, supply omission and make the Constitution more practical and relevant to the needs of Ghanaians in the 21st century. “This review is going to be an elaborate process where there will be a massive solicitation of views from Parliament, Ghanaians in the Diaspora, the media, the public and all,” the source said. Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana