Lawyer Maurice Ampaw has weighed in on the cases filed at the Supreme Court seeking the apex court interpretation of Ghana’s constitutional provision on presidential term limits.
According to Maurice Ampaw, the court must consider the interest of Ghanaians in interpreting any related cases and not through a political lens in interpreting the Constitution.
He argued that the Constitution says that every president, no matter how good you are, is limited to two terms.
Speaking in an interview, Maurice Ampaw stated, “The Constitution says that every president, no matter how good you are, your limit is two terms, and two terms is two terms”.
“The Supreme Court judges should know that for any issue of interpretation, they should look at it from the broader interest, beyond a political lens. They should not put on a political lens in interpreting the Constitution,” he stated.
He added, “They should look at the soul, spirit behind the Constitution, the purposeful approach to ensure that we interpret the Constitution to meet the aspiration of the ordinary Ghanaian”.
“Currently, as we speak right now, the issue before the Supreme Court, where some people are asking for a third term, the Supreme Court must begin to look at the hope and aspiration of Ghanaians. Are Ghanaians ready to accept a president whose term is going to expire, to be given another third term?” he questioned.
“The Supreme Court knows that the decision of the nation as it comes to whether there should be a third term or not, whether the suit will succeed or not, the law is in their bosom, and the constitutional interpretation is in their bosom.
“They should ensure that when they’re interpreting it, they have in mind, not the hopes and aspirations of a president, but rather the hopes and aspirations of the ordinary Ghanaian,” Ampaw said.
Meanwhile, Kennedy Osei Nyarko, the Member of Parliament for Akim Swedru, has said the Supreme Court don’t have the power to amend Ghana’s presidential term limits.
The NPP MP argued that the Supreme Court’s interpretation of Ghana’s presidential term limits will not make any former or sitting president eligible for an additional term.
According to Kennedy Osei Nyarko, the 1992 Constitution is clear on the presidential term limit and cannot be changed through a court interpretation.
In a Facebook post, the NPP MP stated, “The Supreme Court’s interpretation of the presidential term limits, whether in favour of or against the proponents, will not automatically qualify any sitting president who is done with their term to be eligible for another term”.
He stressed that only a constitutional amendment through a national referendum can alter Article 66 of the Constitution, adding that Parliament, acting alone, does not have the authority to amend the presidential term limit.
“The Constitution is unambiguous on the term limit of any president. Not even Parliament on their own can alter the presidential term without a referendum”.
Kennedy Osei Nyarko further described the legal action seeking the Supreme Court’s interpretation as “an exercise in futility”.
He added, “Even though it’s the constitutional right of those who have taken the issue to the Supreme Court for interpretation, they are just embarking on an exercise in futility since the Supreme Court itself knows they don’t have the powers to amend or otherwise alter any part of Article 66 of the 1992 Constitution”.
“This is just common sense which should not elude any reasonable human being who understands the architecture of our Constitution.”
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