Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Speaker of Ghana’ Parliament has called for immediate reforms to Ghana’s democratic structure to address key challenges threatening the country’s political system.
Speaking at the University of Ghana’s 75th Anniversary Lecture, Speaker Bagbin stressed that although Ghana’s democracy has deepened over the years, it has reached a crucial juncture where collective efforts are required to salvage and strengthen its foundations.
“The question on many of our citizens’ minds is ‘has democracy really delivered’? That is a very legitimate question. The October 2023 edition of the Economist magazine had this telling headline: ‘Africa Loses Faith in Democracy.’ The magazine noted that: Africans are frustrated with the sham that passes for ‘democracy’ in most countries.
“They are also fed up with the flimsy states that provide neither security nor prosperity. Around two-thirds of them, as well as majorities in 28 of 36 polled countries, feel their countries are heading in the wrong direction. Should this continue, many Africans, especially younger ones, may be tempted to reconsider shabby social contracts – and look for radical change”.
Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Speaker of Ghana’ Parliament
In a stark reflection, Speaker Bagbin shared findings from the 2023 Global State of Democracy report by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), which pointed to a global decline in democratic performance.
He also cited Afrobarometer’s analysis, which indicated that governance failures and unmet democratic aspirations have fostered declining confidence in democratic institutions and an increasing attraction to military interventions.
Structural Challenges in Ghana’s Democracy
Speaker Alban Bagbin identified three major constitutional challenges that have weakened Ghana’s democracy and hampered its development. The first, he said, is the excessive concentration of executive power.
While the Constitution aims to establish a balance of power between the executive, legislature, and judiciary, Speaker Bagbin argued that it has created a system dominated by the executive.
“Our democracy is supposed to stand on three legs – the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary. Yet, the framers of the Constitution created a powerful executive, to the detriment of the two other branches”.
Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Speaker of Ghana’ Parliament
The fusion of executive and legislative powers, he explained, has made the executive omnipresent in Parliament, eroding the legislature’s ability to act as an effective check on executive power.
Speaker Bagbin highlighted the vast resource imbalance between the branches of government, where the executive controls over 98% of the national budget, while Parliament and the judiciary receive less than 1% each.
“Oversight can be difficult without resources,” Speaker Bagbin stressed, noting that Parliament lacks basic tools like office space and researchers to effectively scrutinize the executive.
The Speaker of Parliament also pointed to the “marriage between the executive and the legislature,” which has compromised parliamentary oversight.
Most Members of Parliament (MPs), he said, are more concerned with securing positions in the executive than fulfilling their duties as legislators.
“They are in perpetual keen competition to catch the eye of the President, rather than focusing on their primary role as representatives of the people,” Speaker Bagbin lamented.
The “Winner-Takes-All” Syndrome
The second constitutional flaw, according to Rt. Hon Alban Bagbin, the Speaker of Ghana’s 8th Parliament is the absence of provisions for power-sharing.
This he noted has led to a “winner-takes-all” political system, where once a party wins power, opposition parties are entirely excluded from governance.
This, Speaker Bagbin explained, fosters a zero-sum political environment that is harmful to plural societies like Ghana. He referenced the reflections of legal luminary Nana Dr S.K.B. Asante, who argued that pluralistic societies should create institutions that allow for inclusive decision-making to avoid marginalizing minority groups.
Speaker Bagbin warned that this winner-takes-all system exacerbates Ghana’s ethnic and political polarization.
He quoted former Defence Minister Dr. Addo Kufuor, who argued in his memoir that the exclusionary nature of the system breeds resentment among losing political and ethnic groups, creating divisions that could one day lead to conflict.
“Ghana cannot be the permanent exception to the conflict afflicting other African countries,” Speaker Bagbin cautioned.
Trust Deficit and Declining Relevance
Speaker Bagbin also expressed concern over the growing trust deficit between Ghanaians and their democratic institutions.
He cited a 2021 Afrobarometer survey that ranked Parliament as one of the least trusted public institutions, alongside the police and other governmental bodies.
According to the survey, 85% of Ghanaians believe MPs are involved in corruption, a statistic that Speaker Bagbin said underscores the need to reset the social contract between leaders and citizens.
He noted that Parliament is increasingly perceived as irrelevant by the public, as it has failed to hold the executive to account and curb corruption.
Speaker Bagbin pointed to incidents in Kenya and Burkina Faso, where citizens frustrated with their parliaments’ ineffectiveness resorted to burning down parliamentary buildings.
“If we do not prove our worth to the people we represent, the writings are clearly on the wall,” he warned.
MP as Trustee or Delegate?
Speaker Bagbin also addressed the ongoing debate about the role of MPs, questioning whether they should act as independent trustees or delegates strictly adhering to the will of their constituents.
He noted that Ghanaian MPs largely function as “delegates with a mandate,” but this role has been complicated by the perception that MPs should also be “development agents” who deliver projects in their constituencies.
This expectation, coupled with the party system’s structure, forces MPs to prioritize the interests of the party and the president over their constituents, he argued.
Political polarization, Speaker Bagbin added, has further hindered bipartisan cooperation in Parliament, asserting that most issues are viewed through a binary partisan lens, making it difficult to build consensus on national issues.
He emphasized the need for MPs to act as representatives of the people, rather than as agents of the party or the president.
Call for Action
In his concluding remarks, Speaker Bagbin urged a national conversation on constitutional reforms to address these challenges and restore public confidence in Ghana’s democracy.
“We need a re-set of the social contract and the relationship we have with our people,” he said, calling for a more inclusive political system, strengthened parliamentary oversight, and measures to reduce the influence of the executive.
As Ghana remains an island of stability in a turbulent region, Speaker Bagbin’s message serves as a timely reminder that without reforms and collective action, the country’s democratic gains could be at risk.
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