CONSTITUTION REVIEW COMMISSION (CRC) THE CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW PROCESS

1. Republic of Ghana CONSTITUTION REVIEW COMMISSION (CRC)THE CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW PROCESS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR STRENGTHENING DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES AND GOOD GOVERNANCE IN GHANA PRESENTATION TO ANNUAL MULTI-DONOR BUDGET SUPPORT (MDBS) JOINT REVIEW By Dr. Raymond Atuguba (Executive Secretary) 16th May, 2011

2. THE MANDATE OF CRC • ASCERTAINConsultations Reports • ARTICULATE Research Recommendations • DRAFT BILL President Two Constitution Cabinet Amendment Acts Council of State Parliament Ghanaians • Project Timeframe: 11th Jan. 2010, – 31st Dec. 2011. • Implementation Phase: Jul. 2011 – Dec. 2011. • Implementation phase is part of project design. • Initial budget $2.7m. • Compare Zimbabwe, Sudan, Kenya, $43, $100, $150+

3. MDBS UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES 4&5 • The underlying principles of the MDBS mechanism are laid out in the Framework Memorandum: • 4. Continuing peace and respect for human rights, the rule of law, democratic principles and the independence of the judiciary. • 5. Good governance, accountability of the citizenry, and integrity in public life, including the fight against corruption.

4. CRC UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 &6 • The 6 underlying reasons for the review, accord with the underlying reasons for MDBS: • Control of executive power; • Parliamentary autonomy; • Subsidiary constitutional powers of parliament-for Human Rights, R of L, Gender Equity, etc; • Resource governance; • Voice and the building of citizenship; • Enhanced citizens-government engagement.

5. the “Black Star of Hope…” • Uniting a Divided Country around Common Aspirations: • Unhealthy political divisions and winner takes all-Voting Patterns. • Ethnic divisions: Ga-Adangwe; Akan; Ewe; Mole-Dagbani. • Resulting in Ethnic, Chieftaincy, Land, Political strife. • Building citizenship: • Education on the Constitution, to continue through E-governance sub-project. • Opportunity to ventilate, be heard on anything, even by SMS and Web 2.0. • Housekeeping after 17+ years. • Inclusion of those excluded in 1992.

6. “ the Black Star of… Honour” • Moving Beyond the “Governance Stand-Still”: • Parliament: • Specific and Detailed Constitutional Residuary Powers for Parliament. • Constitution Amendment Trailer Bills. • These laws still carry ethos of the Constitution. • Local Governance: • Deeper Democratisation; • Anti-Poverty Agents. • A firm governance framework to anti-date the flow of oil and gas.

9. Facebook: facebook.com/CRCgh • Twitter: Twitter.com/CRCgh • Text-In Campaign (Referendum): • Three-Part Strategy • Remote participation by text-in for National Constitution Conference • Governance 3.0 • Special Consultations (very frank, open, informative)

10. OUTCOMES • Total Number of Submissions: • 85,000. • Deadline for Submissions: 31st Dec. ‘10. • Only Text-In Submissions • Braille Submissions • Diaspora Submissions, through June 2011. • Qualitative and then Quantitative Analysis: • Nvivo9 Software • First Qualitative, Iterative Qualitative, and then Quantitative. • Matters that have been raised fall under: • 12 TOPIC AREAS • 77 THEMES • 548 ISSUES before conference • 2398 ISSUES after conference and further analyses • The most topical 25, more topical 77.

11. THEMES • National Development Planning • Executive Powers • Legislative Powers • Judiciary and Legal Sector • Decentralisation and Local Governance • Independent Constitutional Bodies • Public Service • Lands and Natural Resources (including Oil and Gas) • National Security • Traditional Authority • Human Rights • Miscellaneous Matters (Indemnity Clauses and Territories of Ghana)

12. NATIONAL CONSTITUTION CONFERENCE • Venue for consensus building around the major issues. • 1st to 5th March, to straddle Independence Day. • Multi-site conference-ICC Clusters of Buildings. • “The Constitution-Our Identity”. • Opening and Closing by the President and Vice President. • 2996 participants from all over the Country attending at their own cost. • Remote participation on the internet and by text messaging. • Few International Participants.

13. MATRICES FOR CONFERENCE

14. LIKELY CHANGESAFTER CONFERENCE • What are the likely changes that will impact on: • 4. Continuing peace and respect for human rights, the rule of law, democratic principles and the independence of the judiciary. • 5. Good governance, accountability of the citizenry, and integrity in public life, including the fight against corruption. • To be effective, the changes must be at the level of: • Constitutional Changes • Legislative Changes to implement the Constitution • Administrative Changes to implement Constitution and Constitution Trailer Legislation. • Changes to be phased in the immediate, medium and long terms.

15. NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANNING • The Commission’s flagship recommendation. • A Constitutionally Independent NDPC. • Composed of Technical Representatives. • Multi-partisan and Multi-sectoral. • To Develop and Monitor the implementation of a Binding, Holistic, Strategic, Longterm, National Development Plan. • That Addresses both the Hard and Soft aspects of our development. • Which Plan is approved by Parliament. • Specific Procedure for Amending the Plan. • Accountability mechanisms embedded in the Plan.

16. EXECUTIVE POWERS Better checks on Executive Powers through: • An independent NDPC that determines and monitors a National Development Plan. • Institutional checks by a stronger Parliament and retrofitted Council of State. • Independent exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion. • A review of powers of appointment. • Some degree of automaticity in human rights provisions. • Strengthening ICBs to reduce their de facto dependence on the Executive. • Ensuring ICBs and the justice system are able to hold the Executive in better check.

17. PARLIAMENTARY POWERS • Ensure autonomy of Parliament by reducing executive control through de facto exclusive law initiation powers. • Remove injunction to appoint 50% ministers from Parliament to avoid Parliamentarians beholding to the Executive. • Generally ensure that Parliament is capable of acting as an effective counterweight to the Executive. • Ensure the accountability of Parliament.

18. THE JUDICIARY • Access to Justice. • Independence of the Judiciary. • Accountability of the Judiciary.

19. INDEPENDENT CONSTITUTIONAL BODIES • Different structures of the ICBs and the strengthens and weaknesses in particular institutional designs. • Expanding the list of ICBs-NDPC, EOCO, Legal Aid Board? ETC. • Fund for ICBs to deal with de facto dependence of ICBs on Executive. • ICBs as counterweight to executive powers. • ICBs as avenues for citizen-government engagement on accountability, corruption, etc.

20. NDPC: • Constitutionally Independent • Technical • Parliamentary Oversight • Accountable to the citizenry through the judiciary, CHRAJ, etc. • CHRAJ: • Institutional Structure • Clearer mandates: Anane, Baba Kamara, on anti-corruption mandate and Reference powers, etc. • Decisions as judgments of the High Court. • All other ICBs have their peculiar issues: • NMC, Broadcasting Law and teeth. • Electoral Commission, constituency demarcations, voting date, electronic voting, proportional representation, etc.

21. PUBLIC SERVICES • Listing the Public Services in the Constitution. • Autonomy of the Public Services (politicisation, victimization, etc). • Should there be a quota for appointments to public offices reserved for women? • Should the retirement age of 60 be reduced, maintained or increased.

22. DECENTRALISATION • Clarity on type of Decentralisation to implement. • Should the RCCs be part of the Local Government System? • Power to create new Districts. • Complete democratisation of the local government system in the long run: • Election of 100% of Assemblywomen. • Election of MMDCEs. • Should the above elections be partisan? • What should be the role of Chiefs in Local Governance? • Should there be an increased in the DACF?

23. CHIEFTAINCY • Why don’t we have queenmothers in the houses of chiefs? • What should be the exact role of chiefs in Ghana today? • Should chiefs have particular and special roles in: • The Council of State • Parliament • The Local Government System? • Should the ban on chiefs participating in active partisan politics be maintained or scrapped? • How do we make chiefs more accountable?

24. HUMAN RIGHTS • Better automaticity on HR provisions. • Better enforceability of ESCRs. • Better provisions on gender equity in the Constitution. • Right to Information. • Property rights of spouses. • Better provisions on Children, PWDs, PLWHA, persons with different sexual orientations. • The Death Penalty.

25. MISCELLANEOUS • Retain, Amend, Remove the Transitional Provisions? • May a part of Ghana secede? • THERE ARE ALSO SPECIFIC PROPOSALS ON:NATURAL RESOURCES, INCLUDING OIL&GAS. • NATIONAL SECURITY.

26. RESEARCH • Broad Policy on Research: • Respecting peoples’ submissions. • Using experiential knowledge-Mini Consultations and Expert papers. • Using expert knowledge-Research Consultants. • Scientificity of the Process: • Methodological Rigour, e.g staggering text-in submissions. • Contextual Analysis: • Mapping Strategy-CERGIS-Regional and District Maps-TPs, e.g. • Population Figures, 2011 and Projections • Gender Map • Resource Map • Electoral Map • Conflicts Map • Three part report structure: • Constitutional, Legislative, Administrative.

28. SPATIAL ANALYSIS

29. CONCLUSION • The Constitution Review Process must be a beginning for raising the governance of Ghana to the next level, a critical beginning, but only a beginning. • The Review must create constitutional openings and spaces that can be used to execute the agenda of improving our governance, including achieving the objectives of the MDBS. • Drilling down from the Constitution, to Legislation, to Administrative Instructions, to Programmes, to Projects is a life time of working continuously on our governance. • This looks humongous, but is possible because of the Commission's flagship reform agenda, making the NDPC an independent body for developing a national development plan, across hard and soft aspects of our development, and monitoring its performance, and responsible to the people through Parliament and the Courts of law,

30. THANK YOU!!!