Reduce The Qualifying Age For President

OPEN LETTER TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW COMMISSION

After eighteen years of governance under the 1992 Constitution with several years of debate on the need to amend some sessions, the President on the 11th January, 2010 inaugurated a commission to review the constitution to reflect the demands of governance.

This I think that is a glorious opportunity to call for the amendment of article 62 (b) which states: ‘A person shall not be qualified for election as the President of Ghana unless he has attained the age of forty years’.

Even though we are still struggling to adopt and implement a National Youth Policy, the age definition of youth in the draft policy is 18-35years and this definition corroborates the definition in the African Youth Charter. Comparing the minimum age for qualifying to contest for President and the age definition of youth in the draft youth policy, it is clear that the youth have been excluded from attempting to contest for President. This in my estimation is the strongest statement against the youth of Ghana. It implies that the Constitution itself endorses the doubt of the capacity of young people thereby placing a psychological barrier on their capability. The article in question also reflects the age old African mentality that wisdom and competence to rule is a preserve for adults.

Tried as I did to find out the spirit of article 62(b), it is unclear what the rationale behind fixing the minimum age of qualifying to contest for President at 40years is. Referring to column 1382 of the official report of the Consultative Assembly, Dr. I.K. Chinebuah was quoted as saying on Tuesday 14th January 1992, that “… as regards the age qualification for the office of the President the committee endorsed the provisions in the N.C.D. Report, the 1969 and 1979 Constitutions and the Committee of Experts Proposals and agreed that the candidates for the Presidency should be at least forty years” (emphasis mine)

The above statement does not adequately explain the basis for fixing the qualifying age for Presidency at forty years. However, it is important to admit that a person ru nning for the highest office of the land should be someone who has gained considerable experience in life and must be matured enough to lead the country. But this certainly does not have anything to do with whether the person is forty years or not. If citizens of sound mind can register and vote at 18 years and even run for parliamentary elections at 21 years then at age 35 people should be adequately prepared to contest for President. In any case, no President is a paragon of knowledge hence institutions such as Cabinet and the Council of State exist to support the President in the execution of his/her mandate.

Again, it is important to recognize that it is one thing qualifying to contest for President and another thing being elected as President. It is not the law that chooses President for us. The choice of President is the sovereign will and right of the electorate. In the case of political parties presidential hopefuls go through a rigorous process of selection as flag bearers before they are presented to the electorate for election. Even if the person is an Independent Candidate, whether that person wins or not is subject to the verdict of the voting public.

Having reviewed constitutions of some countries across the world, 35 years appears to be the best practice in terms of qualifying age for Presidency in advanced democracies. Article 58(1) (b) of the 1949 Constitution of India states “No person shall be eligible for election as President unless he has completed the age of thirty-five years”. It will interest readers to note that between April and May 2009, India held its general parliamentary elections and recorded a total voter turnout of 344 million voters out of 714 million registered voters.

Again, the United States of America which is inarguably the longest democracy has the minimum qualifying age for President as 35 years. In spite of the numerous amendments made to the 1787 Constitution of the USA, article II (1)(5) which states “ No person except a natural born citizen of the United States, at the time of Adoption of this constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of the President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained the Age of thirty five Years as Resident within the United States” remains an outstanding provision.

Here in Africa, article 58 of the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Angola makes the qualifying age for President 35 years. Other countries that place the minimum qualifying age for President at 35 years include: Liberia, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde and Burundi.

The contributions of the youth to the democratic development of Ghana since the pre-independence era cannot be overemphasized. We should therefore be seen as taking initiatives that encourage their participation in the democratic process not only through words but actions because the future of democratic Ghana is dependent on our ability to successfully involve the youth in the democratic process to engender their commitment to the consolidation of democracy in Ghana.

It is my fervent hope that the Constitutional Review Commission will find wisdom in removing the barrier from the minds of the youth that the people of Ghana who approved the 1992 Constitution do not believe in their ability to contest for President by amending article 62(b) of the 1992 constitution so that people who are 35 years can contest for President.

Prosper Hoetu

Youth Network for Human Rights & Democracy Accra. E-mail: peeintouch@yahoo.co.uk