Over the past year, over 60,000 submissions (and counting) have been made to the Constitution Review Commission. While in-depth analysis of the data is ongoing, a group of 17 researchers at the Commission have had an initial scan of the data and found 548 recurring issues under 77 themes, which in turn fall under 12 thematic areas. Having joined the Commission during its various consultations across the country, the researchers combined this with memories from the field to find 25 of the most popular issues, which have since been received with positive feedback from the country's
regions. What follows is the resulting Top 25 list.
While there are indeed many more issues of concern to Ghanaians, these are the most popular and the Commission encourages the general public to make their thoughts on these topics known by sending them to the special SMS shortcode 1992. In doing so, they will invariably be contributing data and insight into other less popular
though just as important issues that are not on the list. THE EXECUTIVE 24/12/2010 1. What is your view on the payment of ex-gratia awards & emoluments to ex-Presidents & public office holders under the Constitution? 27/12/2010 2. The salary, allowances, facilities, pensions & gratuity of sitting (&
former) Presidents are exempt from tax. What are your views on this? 29/12/2010 3. Should a Ghanaian who is also a citizen of another country be disqualified from being elected as an MP or appointed as a Minister of State (and why)? 31/12/2010 4. What is your view on the proposal to limit the number of Ministers & Ministries
appointed by the President? 03/01/2011 5. What is your view on the provision in the Constitution which requires the President to appoint the majority of his Ministers from Parliament? 05/01/2011 6. It has been proposed that the roles of Minister of Justice & Attorney-General
should be separated. What are your views on this?
07/01/2011 7. What do you think of proposals for an independent National Prosecutor to take the
Attorney-General's place in initiating & prosecuting all criminal offences? 10/01/2011 8. What do you think should be the consequence when a sitting President or Vice-President leaves the party on whose ticket he was voted into power? 12/01/2011 9. Some have proposed that Presidential & Parliamentary elections should be held earlier than December. Do you agree? Why? PARLIAMENT 14/01/2011 10. Should any MP be allowed to propose a Bill with cost implications to Parliament for passage into law?
Or should only the President have this right? 17/01/2011 11. The Constitution provides for a minimum of 9 judges to be appointed to the Supreme Court but it doesn't specify the maximum. What are your views on this? THE JUDICIARY
19/01/2011 12. Instead of the Chief Justice choosing which Supreme Court judge sits on a case, should all Supreme Court Justices hear all cases in the Supreme Court?
21/01/2011 13. What is your view on the proposal that a Constitutional Court should be established to hear only constitutional cases? DECENTRALIZATION 24/01/2011 14.
What is your position on the debate that District,
Municipal, & Metropolitan Chief Executives should be elected & not appointed by the President? 26/01/2011 15. What do you think of the constitutional provision which makes the President the appointing authority of 30%
of the members of a District Assembly? 28/01/2011 16.
What do you think of the provision in the Constitution which makes elections to the District Assemblies & other local government units non-partisan? INDEPENDENT
CONSTITUTIONAL BODIES 31/01/2011 17. What's your view on the Supreme Court decision that - corruption cases aside - CHRAJ can't investigate complaints without an identifiable complainant? 02/02/2011 18. What do you think of
proposals to separate the human rights, administrative justice & anti-corruption mandates of CHRAJ into different institutions? 04/02/2011 19. What do you think about the proposals to empower CHRAJ to prosecute corruption cases? 07/02/2011 20. What do you think about proposals to establish a special fund to finance the operations of the independent constitutional bodies?
CHIEFTANCY 09/02/2011 21. What do you think of the
provision in the Constitution that a chief shall not take part in active party politics? PUBLIC SERVICES 11/02/2011 22. Should the retirement age of 60 be maintained, increased or decreased? Why? TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS
14/02/2011 23. Do you think the indemnity clauses of the Transitional Provisions should be retained or repealed?
HUMAN RIGHTS 16/02/2011 24.
What is your view on calls for the abolition of the death penalty? 18/02/2011 25.
Should the Directive Principles of State Policy (under Chapter 6 of the Constitution) be enforceable in court?