Repetitive swearing in of Speaker as acting President needless - Ras Mubarak

Swearing in the Speaker to act as president each time the president and vice-president are not within the jurisdiction of Ghana is needless, Kumbungu MP Ras Mubarak has said.

His comment comes as Prof Mike Oquaye is billed to sworn in on Saturday to act as president for the second time within a week.

President Nana Akufo-Addo will be leaving for an AU summit in Ethiopia on Saturday while Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia recuperates from an illness in the UK, thus, necessitating the second swearing in of the Speaker.

Prof Oquaye served as acting president from Sunday to Tuesday, within similar circumstances.

Mr Mubarak, who is not happy about the emergency sittings of parliament to undertake such constitutional exercises, said: “As constitutional as it is, I think it’s completely unnecessary and the Supreme Court did Ghana a disservice when it ruled that the Speaker has to be sworn in each time President and Vice are out of the jurisdiction.”

Article 60(11) of the 1992 constitution reads: “Where the President and the Vice-President are both unable to perform the functions of the President, the Speaker of Parliament shall perform those functions until the President or the Vice-President is able to perform those functions or a new President assumes office, as the case may be.”

Mr Mubarak, thus, wondered: “When the president travels outside of Ghana, does that render the president incapable of performing the functions of president?”

He said: “I’ve given an indication to legal counsel to apply to the Supreme Court for a review of the decision that got us having to come to parliament each time President and Vice are out.”