Fix the Process, Not the Constitution

The renewed calls to extend Ghana’s presidential term from four years to five years are, in my view, a solution in search of a problem. While the argument is often presented as a way to improve governance and allow governments sufficient time to implement their policies, it fails to identify the real issue confronting our nation.

The problem is not the Constitution.
The problem is the process.
When a process becomes inefficient, the answer is to improve the process, not to amend the Constitution. Unfortunately, proposals to extend the presidential term merely attempt to treat the symptoms while ignoring the underlying disease.

Article 66 of the 1992 Constitution provides that the President of the Republic shall hold office for a term of four years and may not be elected to office as President more than twice. This provision has served Ghana remarkably well throughout the Fourth Republic. It has provided political stability, democratic accountability, and peaceful transfers of power that have earned Ghana international respect.

There is no constitutional crisis requiring us to abandon this proven framework.

The principal justification advanced by supporters of a five-year term is that governments spend too much of their first year making appointments and organizing their administrations. They also argue that political activities begin too early before the next election, leaving governments with only about two effective years to govern.

Ironically, these arguments expose the real problem.

Neither of these challenges is created by the Constitution.

Both are products of administrative inefficiency and weak political management.

If presidential appointments consume too much time, then streamline the appointment process.

If ministerial vetting is unnecessarily delayed, then Parliament should establish more efficient procedures.

If transitions between administrations are cumbersome, strengthen transition planning and administrative coordination.

If campaigning begins too early and distracts governments from governing, then review electoral laws and political party practices to ensure campaigns occur within reasonable and disciplined timelines.

These are management issues.
They are not constitutional defects.
Extending the presidential term simply gives governments more time to operate within the very same inefficient system. Five years of inefficiency will not produce better governance than four years of inefficiency.

Time does not create efficiency.
Leadership creates efficiency.
Discipline creates efficiency.
Good management creates efficiency.
That is where our national attention should be directed.

The United States, a country many times larger than Ghana in land area, population, governmental complexity, and economic activity, has successfully operated under a four-year presidential term for more than two centuries. Successive administrations have managed transitions, appointments, legislation, national security, and economic policy within that same constitutional framework.

The lesson is not that Ghana should copy another country blindly. Rather, it demonstrates that four years is more than sufficient when institutions are efficient, leadership is disciplined, and governance is properly managed.

Many other democracies have likewise strengthened institutions instead of extending political mandates.

Ghana should do the same.
Our objective should be to build a government that works better, not one that simply governs longer.

Our Constitution wisely recognizes that fundamental constitutional provisions should never be altered lightly. Chapter Twenty-Five establishes rigorous procedures for constitutional amendment, particularly where entrenched provisions are concerned. Those safeguards exist because constitutions are intended to provide stability, certainty, and continuity across generations.

Administrative inconvenience is not sufficient justification for constitutional change.

Institutional inefficiency certainly is not.
The answer is straightforward.
Government should establish firm timelines for presidential appointments.

Parliament should expedite confirmation proceedings without compromising proper scrutiny.

State institutions should improve coordination during transitions.

Political parties should exercise discipline by preventing unnecessarily prolonged campaigns that distract governments from governing.

Performance should be measured by results delivered to the Ghanaian people, not by the length of time politicians remain in office.

Every month saved through improved efficiency is equivalent to extending the government’s productive capacity without changing a single word of the Constitution.

That is the reform Ghana needs.
The last thing our nation should do is begin tinkering with constitutional provisions simply because our administrative systems are inefficient. Constitutions are not designed to compensate for poor management. They exist to establish enduring principles that protect democracy, accountability, and the rule of law.

If something is broken, we must fix it.
We should not merely give it more time.
Ghana deserves efficient government, disciplined leadership, and institutions that work. Those goals will not be achieved by extending the presidential term from four years to five years. They will be achieved by reforming the systems that prevent governments from making full and effective use of the four years they already have.

The Constitution is not the obstacle. Our processes are. Let us fix the process, not the Constitution.

By Dr. Michael Buadoo, Ph.D., LL.M.
International Commercial Law Practitioner

Technology Strategist, Policy & Governance

   Comments0