Political scientist at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr Amakye Boateng, has stated that a country is defined by its constitution which invariably specifies the political system the government seeks to institute.
According to him, the constitution forms the crux of growth for any country which desires to see the development take place for its people.
“A country is defined by its constitution and the constitution specifies the political system of government it is putting in place. By talking about the constitution, the understanding is that we have a consensus around the provisions in the constitution, starting from the elites in society and through them to their followers and generally the citizenry [and] society at large. Political scientists argue that you don’t get hundred percent for the constitution. It is likely you will have between 20 to 25 percent of people who will oppose the constitution… The argument is that this is the basic thing that should be in place before you can proceed to talk about sustained economic growth and social development”.
Dr Amakye Boateng
His comments followed Ghana’s celebration of its independence day and how far it has come in realizing its goals.
From the time of independence to date, Dr. Boateng indicated that Ghana has tried on four occasions to establish a system of government where Ghanaians, including the military will accept the fact that the country needs some “basic institutions and structures” in place to build on the constitution. He explained that this is to enable the country generate growth and also to embark on social development to affect the lives of our citizens.
“We need Ghanaians; a majority of them, a maximum of about 70% including the military. So, in Ghana’s 65 years, Ghana spent several of them doing what I call, a merry go round; not understanding itself [and] not knowing what to do by changing one government after another. I’m saying this because we are talking about development”.
Dr Amakye Boateng
Adverse impact of coup in the country
Dr. Boateng expressed that any conversation on coup by people will end up “rolling back every gains” the country has made. He indicated that if Ghana after 65 years still engages in such conversations, we have “not started”, as it is the support from the citizens, particularly the elites that “render the state legitimate” on the basis of which people can work.
“So, once we don’t have this in place, let’s forget about development”.
Dr Amakye Boateng
Commenting on the progress and achievements made so far in the country, Dr. Boateng intimated that the “fourth republic at least should give us a semblance of hope”, which proves things are working. He intimated that it can be measured in instance where various elections, its outcome and people’s ability to resolve their differences are highlighted.
Following this, the political scientist noted that once these developments unfold, then ordinarily, one has reason to hope that for the “politics leg of the development”, they need to render the country legitimate by deciding to work with an “agreed on-system of government [and] democratic governance”.
“If indeed this is the case, then you have reason to hope. But you see, I’m linking this to Prof. Atuguba’s speech and paper; it is problematic. The answer to bad governance in a democracy, mismanagement of resources [and] looting is not a coup d’état. A coup d’état reverses every gain achieved. So, it should never enter into our minds”.
Dr Amakye Boateng
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