Participants at an engagement of the Constitution Review Committee in the Volta Region have stated that education is essential for national development.Consequently, its development and management should be overseen by an independent entity rather than the government to prevent political interference.According to them, the ongoing political interference in education had negatively impacted the sector over the years.They were of the view that the establishment of an independent institution, supported by the Constitution, had become imperative to enhance the quality of teaching and learning that aligned with the developmental requirements of the nation.Contributing to discussions towards amendment of the 1992 Constitution during an engagement with stakeholders in Ho on Friday, the participants also stressed the need for constitutional provision that would require the government to allocate funds for Assemblymen just like the Members of Parliament (MPs) to enable them function more effectively.The stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations (NGOs), traders, fishers, farmers, security agencies, and civil society groups, among others proposed that the term of an elected president should be increased from four to six years, and should be given three terms after which new elections must be held.They also called for constitutional provision that would allow the Chief Justice (CJ) to be elected by the members of the bar instead of appointment by the President, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) should also be elected by the personnel of the service based on seniority.According to them, the Attorney General (AG) should be appointed by a non-partisan body, since such appointments by the President breeds corruption.The stakeholders contended that the AG, who is appointed by the President and also served as a member of cabinet and the legal advisor to the government, would not allow the AG to prosecute members of the government when necessary.They again called for removal of special payments and to Article 71 holders which served as discrimination against Ghanaian workers.The Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, Professor H.
Kwasi Prempeh, lauded the stakeholders for the various submissions, which he said would help in amending the 1992 Constitution to meet the current development needs of the people.Professor Prempeh stated that the 1992 Constitution had served Ghanaians effectively over the years, and it was time to review it to reflect the growing demands of the citizenry to reflect the development needs of the country, and announced that so far the Committee received six hundred submissions.The Volta Regional Minister, Mr James Gunu, lauded the work of the Committee and stressed the need for the Constitution to be translated into the various local languages like Ewe, Akan, among others to facilitate easy understanding by the people.Mr Gunu also indicated that the 1992 Constitution had assisted the country on its democratic journey effectively, and stressed the need for Ghanaians to contribute meaningfully towards its review to serve the country better. FROM SAMUEL AGBEWODE, HO
