Ghana Constitution review must put national interest ahead of party politics, says Prof Prempeh

Prof. H. Kwasi Prempeh, Executive Director of the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) and Chairperson of the 2025 Constitution Review Committee, has called for Ghana’s constitutional review to be carried out independently of partisan political interests.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Monday, 3 August, Prof Prempeh said the Constitution must be regarded as a national document designed to serve both current and future generations, rather than as an instrument for pursuing the objectives of a particular political party or government.

He said the review should concentrate on Ghana’s long-term requirements and seek to improve the country’s system of governance. Constitutional reform, he argued, should not be shaped by the immediate interests of an administration or by the political calculations of any party.

Prof Prempeh added that the process would only gain public confidence if it was transparent, inclusive and firmly guided by the national interest rather than political expediency.

“One will expect that we do not take into our constitution or make our constitution revision process the kind of habit that we have gotten used to in our everyday politics. Constitutions are different; they are forward-looking and they last generations

“They set the foundational roots of the game on how the country is to be governed, how we recruit our national political leadership, and these things transcend party government; they transcend regimes, and they transcend particular leaders,” he said.

He also urged political leaders to approach the exercise with what he described as “a certain sense of patriotic obligation”.

The chairperson further encouraged members of the public to take an active role in the review by submitting their views and proposals. He said broad participation would be important in ensuring that any revised Constitution reflected the aspirations of Ghanaians.

The Constitution Review Committee was established to examine Ghana’s 1992 Constitution and make recommendations aimed at strengthening the country’s democratic institutions, governance framework and constitutional order.

Prof Prempeh’s comments come as the committee considers possible reforms to the constitutional arrangements that underpin how Ghana is governed, how national political leaders are selected and how the country’s democratic institutions operate.

He stressed that those arrangements should be developed with a view to the future and should remain relevant beyond individual political leaders, governments or regimes.

The review process, he said, should therefore rise above the patterns of everyday party politics. Its purpose should be to establish a durable foundation for governance that can serve successive generations, while ensuring that citizens have a meaningful opportunity to influence the final outcome.