We’re implementing recommendations of Constitutional Review C’ssion – Godfred Dame

Deputy Attorney General, Godfred Dame has denied claims that government is sleeping on the recommendations of the constitutional review commission after the report was submitted some 9 years.

At a forum organized by the Election Community of Practice and Learning, some stakeholders including Prof. Raymond Atuguba, Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law and the Inusah Fuseini, Member of Parliament and ranking member of the constitutional, legal and parliamentary affairs committee, expressed disappointment in government for failing to implement the recommendations.

But the Deputy Attorney General maintained that government was working around the clock to implement the recommendations.

“The Attorney General has actually, contrary to the submissions by Inusah Fuseini, taken steps to implement some recommendations of the constitution review commission. I have indicated that there have been submissions from the Office of the Attorney General to Parliament for the amendment of article 243 (1).”

“I will respectfully say that it is not entirely true to say that the president does not have the political will to carry out the amendments. Indeed there has been a demonstration of such political will. There was a committee that was set up and chaired by my humble self and the committee came up with a report dated 15th October 2018 and submitted its report to the Attorney General. And some of the recommendations of the report are already being implemented, most of them being amendments of entrenched commissions. The rest will follow soon”.

Meanwhile, Dean of the School of Information and Communication Studies, Professor Audrey Gadzakpo, has called on government to adopt an aggressive approach to implementing the recommendations of the constitutional review commission.

She says government’s piecemeal approach to implementing the recommendations is slowing the pace of development.

Speaking at the same forum, Professor Audrey Gadzakpo called for a holistic implementation of the recommendations.

“It is important that we adopt a holistic approach to the constitutional review process. We need therefore to put the implementation of the amendments firmly into our priority agenda. We need to re-energize citizens to deepen and consolidate democratic governance. The current situation which we think partly is from outstanding issues in the constitution that we are yet to address is breeding apathy, disengagement of citizens and importantly undermining accountability while encouraging impunity and promoting corruption”.

The Election Community of Practice and Learning earlier today, Wednesday in a press release demanded that government should furnish the public with the status of the implementation of the recommendations of the constitution review commission.