The government has thrown its support behind a recommendation to extend the tenure of the President and Members of Parliament from four years to five years, saying the move would give administrations more time to execute development programmes.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, announced the government’s position on Thursday, July 30, after the Constitutional Review Committee submitted its final report to President John Dramani Mahama at the Jubilee House.
According to Dr Ayine, the current four-year electoral cycle leaves governments with limited time to plan, implement and assess policies, as significant periods are taken up by transition processes and preparations for elections.
He said extending the mandate to five years would create a more realistic governance timeline and reduce the disruption caused by frequent election cycles.
“The government has accepted the recommendation to extend the term of office of the president from four years to five years with the term of parliament extended to correspond with this. Our thinking is practical. Under the current four-year cycle, the early months of every administration are consumed by transition and the final year is consumed by election. A five-year term provides a more realistic timeframe for the formulation, implementation and the assessment of every government,” Dr Ayine said.
The Attorney-General noted that the proposal reflects the government’s view that longer terms would allow administrations to focus more on delivering their mandates rather than navigating repeated electoral timelines.
The recommendation is among several proposed reforms contained in the final report of the Constitutional Review Committee, chaired by Professor H. Kwasi Prempeh.
The report seeks amendments to aspects of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution, including governance arrangements, institutional powers and the tenure of elected officials.
The next steps in implementing the proposed changes are expected to involve the constitutional amendment process, which may require parliamentary approval and, for some provisions, a national referendum.
