The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has implored Ghanaians to respect and uphold the 1992 Constitution until such a time that the needed amendments are made to it.
It says, debates on reviewing aspects of the Constitution should not lead to denigrating or undermining it, as it remained the fundamental law of the land.
“The NCCE calls on Ghanaians to continue to uphold the 1992 Constitution as the fundamental law of Ghana, until any amendment are made where necessary.
The 1992 Constitution is the fundamental law of the land and until the needed reforms are realised, it is imperative on the part of every citizen to recognise and fulfil the rights and responsibilities therein to promote constitutionalism.”
The Chairperson of the NCCE, Ms Kathleen Addy made the appeal at a news conference in Accra yesterday to commemorate this year’s Constitution Day which also marks 30 years of constitutional rule in Ghana.
The event which as well marked 30 years of the establishment of the NCCE was on the theme; “30 years of consolidating Constitutional democracy: Building National Cohesion through civic education and participation in local governance.”
Ms Addy noted that while concerns for an amendment of the Constitution were appreciable, greater efforts must be made towards consolidating the gains made and sustaining Ghana’s democracy.
She enumerated threats facing the country’s democracy including monetisation of politics, terrorism, wanton destruction of the environment especially through activities like “galamsey”, economic hardships and loss of confidence in state institutions.
“Democracy is the most difficult form of governance to sustain but where citizens actively participate in the process, provides the best chance to build a just society.
An indolent, disengaged citizenry cannot sustain democracy and to maintain and improve on what we have, all citizens must fully engage at all times,” she stressed.
The Chairperson urged to play their role to sustain the peace and promote national cohesion.
Scores of Ghanaians continue to push for an amendment of Ghana’s Constitution claiming it as ‘problematic’ to sustain the country’s democracy.
Convener of the #FixTheCountry movement, Oliver Mawuse Barker-Vormawor, leading protesters on Saturday to demand for promulgation of a Constitution argued that the current one favoured the upper class and fewer majority in the country as opposed to the vulnerable in society.
On April 28, 1992, Ghana in a referendum approved a new constitution, ushering in the Fourth Republican dispensation.
More than 3.4 million people voted in favour of the new constitution, representing 92.59 per cent of those who took part in the referendum, with 272,855 people, representing 7.41 per cent of the persons, voting against the constitutional rule.
The Constitution of the Fourth Republic set up the institutions of a liberal democratic state, operating based on the separation of powers, with express guarantees of fundamental human rights.
Since the fourth Republic, Parliament has enacted over 1000 Bills including the Right to Information Act, National Identification Authority Act, Interpretation Act, Food and Drugs Act, the Private Members Bill of 2020 just to mention a few and the repealing of others such as the Criminal Libel law.
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH