Author: Dr. John Osae-Kwapong, Democracy and Development Fellow, CDD-Ghana, and Project Director, the Democracy Project
In an appearance on Joy News’ AM Show this past Wednesday, the issue of a presidential third term came up. I listened with great worry as the Majority Leader of Parliament responded to a series of questions from the host.
I worried for two reasons. First, I expected an immediate shutdown of the conversation by warning of the impropriety of any attempts to tamper with term limits. Second, indulging the conversation, in my opinion, carries with it the unintended consequence of lending credence to the emerging narrative that there is a plan by the current administration to engage in constitutional fiddling and reinterpret the presidential two-term limit.
The goal of such reinterpretation, as per the narrative, is to enable the current president to stay in office for another term. I hope the purveyors, whether out of political mischief or real intent, will pause and reflect on the dangers of embarking on this path, especially at a time of where the West-Africa sub region is facing challenges to its democracy.
Ghanaians Support Term Limits
It is important to acknowledge an important context upfront, informed by data from the Afrobarometer survey. First, Ghanaians strongly support two-term limits for presidents. In the survey, respondents are presented with the following question.
“Which of the following statements is closest to your view? Choose Statement 1 or Statement 2. [Probe for strength of opinion: Do you agree or strongly agree? The Constitution should limit the [president] to serving a maximum of two terms in office. There should be no constitutional limit on how long the [president] can serve.”
In the most recent survey (Round 10, 2024), Ghanaians were split 71%-27% in favor of the constitution “limiting the president to serving a maximum of two terms in office.” This question has been asked seven other times (2002, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2019, and 2022). Over the period, Ghanaian support for two-term limits has ranged between 70% and 80%.
Second, if one looks at neighboring countries that have successfully engaged in constitutional fiddling with presidential term limits, the goal is simply political entrenchment. But Ghanaians abhor political entrenchment. Let me illustrate that with three questions from the Afrobarometer survey.
In Round 9 (2022), 69% of Ghanaians supported the statement “in a democracy, it is better if power sometimes changes hands in elections from one political party to another,” compared to 62% in Round 10 (2024).
Before you are tempted to say Ghanaian support for turnover has weakened, here is the alternative statement – “in a democracy, as long as a government is elected by the people in a free and fair election, it doesn’t matter if one party always wins and continuously governs the country.”
Although the percentage in support of this statement has increased from 30% to 37%, keep in mind that a free and fair election is the condition, and not through constitutional fidgeting.
Third, the percentage of Ghanaians who reject one-party rule increased from 78% (Round 1, 1999) to 85% (Round 10, 2024), and those who reject one-man rule stayed the same – 86% (Round 1, 1999) and 87% (Round 10, 2024).
Purveyors may still choose to ignore this context but in a political environment where Ghanaians have made it clear their feelings about political entrenchment, the consequences of fidgeting with presidential term limits I doubt will augur well for the country.
Just Say No
The president has made it unequivocally clear his commitment to respecting the constitutional term limits placed on him. I accept his promise and believe it will remain so. In my opinion, the legacy he seeks to leave will be tarnished, by just entertaining the thought.
The conversation may not go away any time soon, but I hope that whenever the question is thrown at him in public spaces, he will stay on the path of forcefully rejecting the idea and continued assurance to the public that he is committed to abiding by the term limits.
The purveyors must also say no. Our two main political parties have so far, even during rising tensions in election years, maintained the peace and stability of our democracy.
They have done so, in my opinion, because of mutual acceptance of political competition as the tool for winning and keeping power. I doubt the same mutual acceptance will prevail should there be any attempts to fidget with presidential term limits.
The media, with all due respect, must also stop giving oxygen to the topic. I am not asking the media to stop covering issues being discussed in our public spaces. I am asking some circumspection in how their line of questioning is framed. If you care about Ghana’s democratic peace and stability, you must say no to the purveyors of a presidential third term.
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