Glorifying the ignoble
The Central Regional Minister, Mr Acquinas Tawia-Quansah, is supposed to be the chairman of the Regional Security Council. Therefore, whenever he appears to be seemingly approving lawless acts, it could cause a problem to law and order. The District Chief Executive for Twifo Atti-Morkwa, Bossman Osei Hyiamang Jnr, was recently found guilty of contempt of court and convicted to two weeks’ imprisonment.
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The fact that the crime was not a felony does not mean that the DCE has not been found guilty of a criminal offence. Indeed, he is an ex-convict, simpliciter. Therefore, for Mr Tawia-Quansah to suggest that Hyiamang went to jail because of Ghana is, to say the least, an insult to our laws. If one were to stretch matters, one could suggest that the regional minister could equally be guilty of contempt because he seems to undermine the judicial process by calling an ex-convict a national hero.
It is true that Hyiamang did not go to jail because of misappropriation of public funds nor of any underhand dealing, but he did not go to jail because of Ghana. He went to jail because he failed to give meaning to constitutionalism, the rule of law and in total disregard for the powers and functions of the superior courts of judicature.
I would not wish that the authority and dignity of Mr Tawia-Quansah be impugned in anyway. However, if any Ghanaian were to bring into disrepute any act or decision he has made in his legitimate capacity, there is no way that he would applaud such an individual.
The regional minister’s statement amounts to crass populism as he seems to suggest that the DCE’s conviction could not be justified. That is the meaning that Hyiamang went to jail as a sacrifice for the good of our society. Some citizens who did not agree with the decision of the DCE went to court for the matter to be resolved since they believed in the rule of law as law-abiding citizens.
Whether the DCE acted in the best interest of the people or otherwise, there was the need for him not to act with impunity and unilateralism, but through the rule of law since that is the path we have taken as Ghanaians to promote our development and democracy.
Mr Tawia-Quansah has absolute respect for the President and indeed, if the DCE was reported to have said anything unscrupulous about the President even in a private place, he would have been offended by that conduct. That is why he should not take for granted the crime of the DCE in not only openly defying an order of a superior court of judicature but also ridiculing judges, as if the only legitimate authority and power that must be respected is that of the executive. We need to kill this kind of myopic thinking.
The Judiciary and Legislature are not subservient to the Executive. The same constitution which defines the powers and authority of the executive provides for the other arms even if in our case there is no total separation as in the classic situation of separation of powers.
The conviction of the DCE was not an occupational hazard. It will be imprudent for any public officer to play a needless and useless hero by repeating that act. Those who go that way would be perceiving governance and the rule of law in a warped way. That will assume that the only arm of government worth public respect is the executive.
Public officers who wilfully flout legitimate court orders are unfit for public office, no matter the circumstances. For all of us as citizens, the courts remain our only hope of asserting our fundamental rights. Therefore, we should not do anything to undermine the authority and powers of the courts.
Both the DCE and Regional Minister might have supported the Supreme Court during the hearing of the election petition when some individuals were hauled before the court for contempt. We have to be principled and consistent in our approach to national development and constitutionalism to build institutions to serve as fountains of good governance and democracy.
Proverbs 24:24/25 says that,‘ Whoever says to the guilty, You are innocent- people will curse him and nations denounce him. But it will go well with those who convict the guilty and rich blessing will come upon them.’ Prov. 10:17 also says that,’ he who heeds discipline shows the way to life; but whoever ignores correction leads others astray.’
Thus, although legally the conviction does not bar Hyiamang from public office, the President must relieve him of the post to demonstrate that not all things which are lawful are morally justified.
