Appointing the next chairman
In few months to come Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan the Chairman of the Electoral Commission will be retiring after over two decades of service to mother Ghana. As a Chairman he had his ups and downs but to err is human.
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Dr. Afari-Gyan in his tenure supervised and conducted 6 major elections in 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. In between he also supervised the District Assembly elections in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006 and the famous one in 2010. Beyond the shores of Ghana he played critical roles in Elections in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria and the Solomon Islands among others.
He also distinguished himself by supervising political parties’ elections at various times during the elections of Presidential, Parliamentary Candidates and Political Party executives at the wards, polling stations, constituency, regional and national levels. For good or for bad there is an end to every situation and Dr. Afari-Gyan must fulfil the constitutional obligation and so must give up the
Character
I expected from the next Chairman of the Electoral Commission a fearless woman or man; who will not be afraid to take bold decisions as far as he or she works within the ambit of the laws of mother Ghana. This person should be brave and courageous. She / he must be someone who will not succumb to dictates of those “people above” that we have never seen.
He must be someone who consults but who knows every decision has implication on her / his position and the risk associated with the mandate giving him / her. She / he must be a proactive and a person with vision; he must think beyond the box. The personality to be selected must be someone whose work demonstrates commitment to serving Ghana for the benefit of the citizenry.
The new Chairperson must be a trustworthy and frank person and who will not give us a concern to worry about. He must demonstrate astuteness, objectivity and impartiality in his judgement. The person should be someone who will not be ran over by the political parties in the struggle to win power; but someone who believes in what he is doing as far as his work does not conflict with his mandate or authority. The Constitution gives the Chairperson powers and protection in Article 46 which states “Except as provided for in this Constitution or in any other law not inconsistent with this Constitution, in performance of its functions, the Electoral Commission, shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority”. This provision is clear and unambiguous; that no other authority can interfere with the work of the Electoral Commission.
Competencies
The candidates should be someone with experience as public office holder, or private administrator of proven capabilities, knowledgeable, skilful backed by strong education. The person could also be a civil society person with strong democratic credentials of promoting good governance, democracy and adherent of rule of law.
She / he must be some who sets high performance goals and achieves the set goals; someone who inspires actions through teams and executes energy and zeal in the line of duty; some who envisions in a compelling future; and someone who commits to the future knowing one day she / he will be out of the system but posterity is the best judge. In all these she / he must be someone with transformative agenda but respect the laws of the land. The work involves engagement with uncountable stakeholders and the personality therefore must be someone who is ready to engage, commit to share perspective and learn from situations for improved delivery on the work of the Commission.
Constitution
Giving that the person must work in tandem with the Constitution of the Republic his appointment must strictly follow the laid down procedures as provided for by the Constitution. There should not be any ambiguity in the appointment either than what the 1992 Fourth Republican Constitution provides. It is good for the appointing body to consult widely but the appointing authority must also bear in mind that any contravention of the Constitution will likely lead to legal consequences, it is therefore important that a strict legal procedure is followed throughout the processes leading to the swearing in of the Chairperson. Critically Articles 43 (2), and 70 (2) assigns to the President of the Republic the sole responsibility of appointing the Chairman and members of Electoral Commission, though must do this in consultation with the Council of State.
Political Parties
Considering the constitutional responsibilities bestowed on the President and other complementing bodies such as the Council of State it is equally the responsibility of political parties to trust the processes leading to the appointment of the next Chairman of the EC. After all appointments of any other head of a public body will happen at any point in time during the tenure of one particular president; the appointment of the Chief Justice, the Speaker of Parliament, the
Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice or the Chairperson of the National Commission on Civic Education may happen during the tenure of a President who might be elected on the ticket of a particular political party or who might have won an election as independent candidate.
My proposal to the sitting President who is likely to appoint the new Boss of the Electoral Commission is that he must stay strictly to Constitutional provisions but must give high consideration to competencies.
Responsibility of the People
From all indications it is obvious that the Electoral Commission and the Chairperson and all other personnel at the Commission are responsible and accountable to only the citizen and the Constitution of the Republic.
The Chairperson therefore cannot be influenced by the appointing authority after the processes of choosing him or her are completed. This is why all Ghanaians must remain calm and commit to the process. I will also urge every individual and bodies within the confines of the territory of Ghana to undoubtedly trust the process and provide constructive suggestions that will support the selection and appointment of the next Chairperson of the Electoral Commission.
Upholding the Constitution and the tenets of democracy is the responsibility of all.
Frank Wilson Bodza
A Political Scientist and Human Rights Activist
[email protected]
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