By Ernest Nutsugah
Accra, Sept. 30, GNA – The Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) has advocated constitutional reforms to limit the President’s appointing powers and strengthen accountability, long-term national development planning and institutional independence.
Speaking at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) Constitutional Review engagement in Accra on Tuesday, the Most Reverend Dr Paul Kwabena Boafo, the Immediate Past Presiding Bishop of The Methodist Church Ghana, said long-term national development planning would promote policy continuity and encourage bipartisan consensus on strategic national priorities.
The Chancellor of the Methodist University said the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) should be strengthened and national budgets linked to long-term development objectives.
The forum provided an opportunity for Christian and Muslim leaders to share their perspectives on key proposals contained in the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) report.
The CRC, chaired by Professor Henry Kwasi Prempeh, was inaugurated in January 2025 to undertake a comprehensive review of the 1992 Constitution.
The Committee presented its final report and recommendations to President John Mahama in December 2025.
On the proposed extension of the presidential and parliamentary term from four to five years, Rev. Dr Boafo said the CCG did not support the proposal.
He said the Council shared the position of other institutions that had rejected the five-year proposal, arguing that effective governance depended more on policy continuity than on extending the electoral cycle.
“The government accepted the proposal on grounds that an additional year would provide more time for policy formulation, implementation and assessment.
“The Church is not in favour of the proposed five-year presidential term, and supports the IEA and other national bodies who have positioned themselves for the four years as sufficient for an elected government to implement its programme,” he said.
On presidential appointments and executive power, Rev. Dr Boafo said the Council supported a constitutional framework that clearly differentiated between executive office and independent constitutional bodies.
He said the President’s appointing powers in respect of independent constitutional bodies should be limited, with other key stakeholders involved in the appointment process.
“We say that there should be transparency, merit in public appointments, the size and cost of government, accountability for presidential appointees, conflict of interest must be avoided, and transition agreements should be properly laid down,” he said.
The Council also supported proposals to strengthen the independence, professionalism, funding and accountability of institutions including the Electoral Commission, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and the Auditor-General.
It emphasised, however, that institutional independence should be accompanied by accountability.
The CCG also rejected the CRC proposal to cap the number of Supreme Court Justices at 15.
Rev. Dr Boafo said such a cap could increase the workload of the apex court, given its broad jurisdiction.
He said the Council would support the proposal only if the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court was reviewed to ensure that certain cases did not proceed to the apex court.
“The Church is of the opinion that as long as the Supreme Court continues to have broader jurisdiction, that is, general jurisdiction, original, appellate and supervisory, capping its size will overload the Court with cases,” he said.
Sheikh Armiyawo Shaibu, Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, said the minimum age requirement for contesting the presidency should remain at 40 years, rather than the 35 years proposed by the CRC.
He said although age might not be a decisive factor in determining good leadership, national leadership required experience, exposure and emotional maturity.
Madam Sophia Akuffo, a former Chief Justice, urged the Constitutional Review Implementation Committee (CRIC) to take citizens’ views and concerns into account as it worked towards implementing recommendations contained in the final constitutional review report.
GNA
Edited by Beatrice Asamani Savage
Reporter: Ernest Nutsugah