Former Tamale Central Member of Parliament Inusah Fuseini says extending Ghana’s presidential term from four years to five would not, by itself, make government more efficient.
Mr Fuseini said the priority should be improving the way governments work and deliver their policies, rather than giving them more time in office.
The proposed change is contained in the government’s position paper on the Constitutional Review Committee’s report. It recommends a five-year, single-term presidential tenure as one of the amendments to Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
However, speaking in a radio interview with Accra-based Citi FM, Mr Fuseini argued that the existing four-year term provides a focused and committed government with enough time to implement its plans and fulfil its campaign promises.
He said the main problems affecting governance were structural and would not be resolved simply by extending a president’s tenure.
Mr Fuseini pointed to John Dramani Mahama’s current administration as an example of how a government could make significant progress within a limited period when it had clear objectives and a defined sense of purpose.
He also rejected the suggestion that governments lose their first year while settling into office and then spend their final year preparing for an election.
“No, I don’t. John Mahama’s second coming has dispelled that idea. It just means that a government, when you come with intention, purpose, and deliberateness, you’ll be able to achieve so much even in your first year,” he said.
According to Mr Fuseini, extending the presidential term could create a risk of complacency rather than encourage better performance. He called instead for clear and measurable standards against which governments could be assessed from the beginning of their time in office.
Those benchmarks, he said, should examine how quickly a government appoints officials, sets up institutions and begins putting its policies into practice.
“The amendment is not talking to efficiency. It’s talking to lethargy. You are elected to work for the benefit and welfare of the people,” he said.
His comments come as Ghana considers a wider review of the constitutional framework that has governed the country since 1992. The proposal for a five-year term is among the amendments being considered in response to recommendations made by the Constitutional Review Committee.
Mr Fuseini maintained that increasing the length of a presidential term was not the answer to concerns about the effectiveness of government. In his view, governments should be judged by the clarity of their plans, the speed with which they begin acting and the results they deliver for the public.
He nevertheless expressed support for the broader constitutional review process. While opposing the proposed extension of the presidential tenure, he said Ghana’s Constitution should continue to develop so it can respond to the country’s changing needs and the challenges involved in governing it.
