The day Ghana will wake up without a president

There are a number of defects and gaps in Ghana’s 1992 Constitution that could cause constitutional crisis in the future. One such potential crisis could emerge if the President is suddenly incapacitated or passes away, and both the Vice President and the Speaker of Parliament are unable to act in his stead, as provided for by article 60 of the Constitution.

Article 60 (8) of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution makes the Vice President the first in line to assume the presidency in the event of the President’s absence from Ghana, resignation, removal from office, inability to perform his functions as a result of sickness or death. If the Vice President is also unable to act, article 60 (11) makes the Speaker of Parliament next in line.

With the presidential succession plan ending with the Speaker of Parliament, a constitutional crisis could occur if both the Vice President and the Speaker of Parliament are unable to assume the presidency contemporaneously due to illness, death, or other incapacitating circumstances.

The lacuna in the 1992 Constitution’s succession plan therefore creates a leadership vacuum that could result in Ghana waking up one day without a Head of State and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces.

The presidency is the fulcrum of the functionality of governance. It is the sun in the solar system around which all other things revolve and derive energy. Can you imagine the United States, for example, without a President or short of presidential successors for just a single day?

The avoidance of a vacuum in the presidency is very important to the US so much so that when President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed in Texas, just over two hours after his death, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, flanked by Jackie Kennedy, the widow of President John F. Kennedy, still wearing clothes stained with the blood of her slain husband, was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States aboard the Airforce One.

Some people may think that it is a near impossibility for the President, Vice President and Speaker of Parliament to be incapable of performing the functions of the Office of the President simultaneously. Could that have been the thoughts of the framers of the 1992 Constitution as well?

Let us consider the scenarios below. It is my prayer that none of these scenarios ever occur but they are possibilities and we need to have them in our contemplation and make the necessary provisions to ensure the continuity of government.

• A major earthquake struck Accra during a parliamentary session or a national event attended by all three leaders; they could all be incapacitated simultaneously.

• During a national ceremony or public event, a well-planned and coordinated terrorist attack successfully targeted the President, Vice President and the Speaker of Parliament, thereby plunging the country into a constitutional crisis.

• A presidential delegation traveling to an international summit or domestic event, with all three leaders aboard the Presidential Aircraft could be involved in a plane crash, leaving the country without its three top leaders.

• During the COVID-19 pandemic, the President, Vice President, and Speaker of Parliament could have contracted the disease simultaneously and perhaps died within hours or days of each other.

• A military coup d’etat did not succeed. The Constitution is still intact but the coup plotters succeeded in killing the President, Vice President and left the Speaker of Parliament in a vegetative state.

These few scenarios clearly show that there is a possibility of Ghana descending into a constitutional crisis if the Constitution is not amended to forestall any such occurrence.

The absence of a clear successor in the scenarios given above, which would lead to a major power vacuum, could have severe political, economic, and security implications.

With no clear leadership, the day-to-day running of government could be hindered, delaying key policy decisions and creating uncertainty and anxiety. Ministries and agencies may become sheep without a shepherd, leading to a halt in the implementation of critical policies and programmes.

A lack of leadership might create room for political manoeuvring, leading to a potential constitutional breakdown. Undemocratic forces could exploit the situation to fill the power vacuum and that could be the end of our democracy for, perhaps, a long period of time.

A constitutional crisis of this nature would most likely lead to prolonged political instability because no law has made provision to deal with it. As the nation scrambles around for solutions to the crisis, this could fuel social unrest. Citizens frustrated by the lack of leadership and economic hardships may take to the streets to demand solutions.

This could lead to clashes with security forces, further destabilizing the country.

In the midst of the crisis, investor confidence may wane due to fears of instability, leading to economic downturns.

When it comes to presidential system of government, the United States is, arguably, the standard bearer. Our democratic governance mimics that of the United States.

Interestingly, the country, whose governance system we modelled ours, that is, the United States, has a presidential succession plan that ensures that, perhaps, only the second coming of Jesus Christ could bring an end to a successor to the US presidency.

The US presidential succession plan follows in this order (per the combined effect of the US Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947):

• The President;

• Vice President;

• Speaker of the House of Representatives;

• President Pro Tempore of the Senate (traditionally held by the longest-serving member of the majority party in the Senate);

• All Cabinet Ministers succeeding in the order in which their departments were created starting with the Secretary of State.

Do we have to wait till that day comes when we may wake up with Ghana having no President and Commander-In-Chief? Certainly no.

To prevent such a constitutional crisis, we must take proactive measures to address the gaps identified in the Constitution with regard to a robust succession plan.

Firstly, I am happy that after many years of rhetoric and lip services, it appears Ghana is finally serious about amending the 1992 Constitution to address some of these gaps and defects in the Constitution.

The Constitution must be amended to expand the line of succession to include other high-ranking officials, such as the Chief Justice, the Deputy Speakers of Parliament, Majority Leader of Parliament or Senior Cabinet Ministers, to ensure continuity in leadership.

I am one of the many voices that have advocated for the abolishment of the Council of State unless it is completely reformed to become more relevant in the governance system of our country. Details of a proposed reformation of the Council of State is for another day.

However, if the Council of State is reformed to become more of a value-for-money institution, then alternatively, the Constitution could be amended to transform it into a Presidential Transition Council (whenever there is a power vacuum) to manage the transfer of power to ensure that the country remains stable and functional during such interim periods.

A constitutional crisis triggered by the inability of the Vice President and the Speaker of Parliament to succeed the President in the event of the latter’s death, removal from office, absence from the country, or any other incapacitating events would have severe implications for Ghana’s governance, economy, and stability.

The consequences outlined in this article could be dire and further underscore the need for proactive measures to address this potential gap in the succession plan.

By amending the Constitution, Ghana can safeguard its democratic achievements and ensure continuity in leadership, even in the face of unforeseen challenges. The time to act is now, to preserve the peace, stability, and prosperity that Ghanaians have worked so hard to build.

I look forward to seeing article 60 of the 1992 Constitution amended to address this gap I have identified in the course of time.