Council of State to go?

Prof Kofi Awoonor, Chairman of Council of State         One of the several issues that has been put before the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) for a possible consideration is the amendment of the law that established the Council of State and possibly replace it with one that will expand it into some sort of a second chamber of Parliament, as it exists in certain jurisdictions. At a mini national consultative meeting on governance in Accra on Friday, Alhaji Alhassan Abdulai, Chief Executive Officer of Enfoworld for Sustainable Development, made a proposal for the Council of State to be expanded to include chiefs, teachers, media representatives and other identified groups. He believes this would enable the Council of State to give proper advice to the Executive and the Legislature before they pass certain laws, since, according to him, “it is not only political parties have their representatives there.” Whilst appreciating the fact that any president rises to power on the ticket of a political party, Alhaji Abdulai said the president must serve the interest of all Ghanaians and not a handful of people, especially members of his party. He also stressed the need for the Constitution to be amended to make the position of municipal or metropolitan chief executive (MMCEs) elective based on their competence. According to him, this would not only make MMCEs accountable but also give the people the option of either endorsing or changing them (MMCEs) in the event of non- performance. He said most of these government officials do not feel any sense of responsibility towards the people. On his part, Programmes Officer of the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) expressed worry over the level of powers vested in the Executive. He believes this makes the Executive too powerful to an extent that virtually everybody wants to be part of that arm of government. “For me curbing, Executive power is very very important to restoring a stronger system…,” he noted. Director of Legal Aid, A. Y Seini, also stressed the need for the Constitution to be amended to empower the police to establish an anti corruption division to pursue corruption cases. Furthermore, he wants the office of the Attorney General to be detached from the Minister of Justice since, as many have argued time and again, it breeds conflict of interest. Source: Daily Guide