The President’s recent letter to Parliament to halt presenting the anti-LGBTQ bill to the Presidency until the Supreme Court has pronounced its verdict concerning the bill has fueled a debate on whether or not the President’s executive power supersedes the legislative power of the Parliament.
The President’s action has also left the public wondering if the conventional tool of Checks and Balances works in Ghana’s governance system as the President’s continuous disregard for the constitutional order undermines the general will of Ghanaians.
Lecturer of law at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Dr. Justice Srem-Sai, indicated that the President’s latest action is an exhibition of a lack of candor which is a necessary trait for holding a public office.
He stated that Ghanaians are treating the President’s argument for his refusal to assent to the anti-LGBTQ bill with an amount of significance it (the President’s action) does not deserve.
“I don’t believe that the President has any honest belief in all the arguments he [the President] is making. I don’t think he [the President] and any of his legal advisers believe that when someone files a process in a court, a constitutional mandate or command ought to stop; merely because someone has filed a process in court”.
Dr. Justice Srem-Sai
He further indicated that the E-levy suits that the Parliament and the convener of the Fix the Country Movement, Oliver Barker Vormawor, filed against the government and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) respectively, serve as precedence that, a filed injunction cannot stop a President’s constitutional mandate to assent to the bill.
Moreover, Dr. Srem-Sai indicated that the President has no candid belief in his (the President’s) argument to wait on the Supreme Court’s verdict before he (the President) makes a decision concerning the bill. He noted that the President is aware of the provision made by the Constitution regarding issues as such.
“When the Constitution gives you a command and places a duty on you to perform you have no discretion to defer or refer that duty to another person [or entity]. That position was made clear in the recent case of Professor Kwadwo Appiah-agyei”.
Dr. Justice Srem-Sai
President Plays Delay Tactics
Dr. Srem-Sai further alleged that the President’s actions are just a series of antics aimed at achieving an objective, arguing that the President is aware that the Supreme Court is unlikely to decide on the matter before the year ends, a situation the President will use to avoid assenting to the bill.
He opined that the letter from the Presidency addressed to Parliament sought to denigrate the Clerk of Parliament, but more importantly, it insulted the Presidency. He indicated that the letter contains so much threat which is a sign of insecurity in the Presidency.
“The whole thing is lack of seriousness and to a large extent, lack of candor. I don’t think we need to argue any law on this matter. Every person with a basic understanding of politics will know this is just a way to delay some processes so that the President will avoid the issue”.
Dr. Justice Srem-Sai
He indicated that the Supreme Court is likely to attend to the injunction suit filed against the bill in October after following the due processes. He indicated that October is close to the General Elections hence people will be focused on election campaigns than they will on the bill which allows the President to avoid assenting to the bill.
He noted that Parliament however has several means of countering the President’s actions, indicating among other means, that Parliament can also use the President’s tactics against him by refusing to acknowledge any communications sent to the Parliament from the Presidency.
While the debate on whether the President will assent to the anti-LGBTQ bill or not is ongoing, the decision of the President to wait for the verdict of the court leaves Parliament in limbo as Parliament can do nothing concerning the bill unless the President decides to veto it or refer it to the suitable committee to be reviewed.
