December 17 referendum aborted – Akufo-Addo

President Akufo-Addo has announced the much talked about December 17 referendum has been put on hold due to divided opinions on the exercise.

Speaking to the nation on Sunday evening, President Akufo-Addo said: “I do not believe this is a proper atmosphere for such an issue… It is with deep regret that I’ve given the instruction to the local government minister to abort the process and see to the withdrawal of the bill.”

The president said calling off the referendum will allow for more consultation.

“I do not believe that such an amendment should be driven as a party matter. There has to be a clear national consensus and agreement amongst the populace that a particular entrenched provision no longer serves the interest of the people, and, thus, has to be removed,” he said.

He continued, “In this case, it had been long apparent that political parties were, in fact, actively involved in district assembly elections, despite their apparently non-partisan nature. The time had come to strip the process of its hypocrisy, and accept and work with the reality of party involvement.”

Explaining the rationale for his decision, the President stated that that he came into office, nearly three years ago, with the firm conviction, emanating from the campaign and national discussions, that there was a national consensus for two important amendments to the country’s governance system, which would enhance its effectiveness and accountability – the reorganization of the country’s regional governance structure, and the potential involvement of political parties in local governance.

It was in furtherance of this and other matters that, on Tuesday, 18th April, 2017, a little over four (4) months into my mandate, he held a meeting with his three predecessors, their Excellencies Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, and John Dramani Mahama, at Jubilee House, to seek their views and counsel on these issues.

“I came away from that meeting with the view that there was consensus amongst us that the time had come for political parties to participate openly in district assembly elections and local governance,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo noted that, indeed, amongst the leadership of Parliament and amongst Members of Parliament on both sides, and amongst, virtually, all stakeholders who had been consulted either by him, or by the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, the clear indications were that there was a broad national consensus for the repeal of article 55(3).

Debunking the notion that elections in Ghana’s 4th Republic have been divisive, the President stated that elections have rather been a unifying factor in the politics of the 4th Republic, the reason why “we have experienced the longest, uninterrupted period of stable, constitutional governance in our history, banishing the spectre of instability that disfigured the early years of our nation’s existence, and the benefits are still showing. It would also mean that freedom of association, which is one of the most fundamental freedoms in any democracy, would be given full expression in Ghanaian democracy.”

NDC U-turn

Regrettably, President Akufo-Addo stated that the main opposition party, the National Democratic Congress, made a U-turn, and stated that it was no longer prepared to go along with the national consensus.

“They indicated further that they will actively campaign for a ‘No’ vote. In as much as I still believe that there is enough support in the country for a ‘Yes’ vote to be successful on 17th December, I do not believe that this is the proper atmosphere in which an issue of such nature, i.e. the repeal of an entrenched provision of the Constitution, should be addressed in our country,” he said.

Even after their U-turn, the President revealed that he undertook consultations across a broad range of opinion as to the way forward, with the general result being that the process of repeal should be put on hold, for the time being, to enable a durable, national consensus to be forged on this matter.

“In these circumstances, I am convinced that it will not serve the public interest to go ahead with the holding of the Referendum on 17th December, even though I believe a strong campaign for a ‘Yes’ vote would have succeeded. This is not the kind of atmosphere in which the repeal of an entrenched provision of the Constitution should take place,” he added.

Despite having an unrepentant belief in party politics being good for the country, President Akufo-Addo stated that “I also think that, on matters of such constitutional significance, there should be a broad, national consensus behind the repeal of an entrenched provision of the Constitution”.

The President assured that his Government will continue to work for a broad, national consensus on the issue, adding that “should such a consensus be attained for the repeal of article 55(3) of the Constitution, and an agreement reached for political parties to participate in and sponsor candidates for election to district assemblies, at any point during my tenure of office as President of the Republic, the matter will be brought again back to the front burner of our public discourse for the necessary action”.

No vs Yes campaigners

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and a section of the National House of Chiefs have been on the side of the ‘No’ campaigners.

“The House, based on the recommendation of its Legal Committee, strongly objects to the proposal that membership of local assemblies should exclusively comprise representatives of political parties, as in the case of Parliament. We are therefore advocating for the outright rejection of the proposal to amend Article 55(3) of the constitution,” the House said in a statement.

However, some prominent chiefs including the Okyenhene Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin II have been on the side of the Yes campaigners.

In a statement, the Okyehene stated that it is “Osagyefuo’s stance that calls from certain quarters urging the good people of Ghana to vote against the amendment of the Constitution should be ignored. It is not founded on a well-considered understanding of the greater national interest.”