Transition Bill to reform institutions

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw OwusuThursday May 12, 2011
Dr. Michael Ofosu-Mensah, a Research Fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has said the Presidential Transition Bill currently before Parliament presents an opportunity towards institutional reforms in the country.

He has therefore urged the legislative arm of government to urgently work hard to get the bill passed with utmost urgency, since according to him, the Presidential Transition Bill remains integral to the enhancement of good governance and consolidation of democracy in Ghana.

Dr. Ofosu-Mensah disclosed this in an interview with DAILY GUIDE after a workshop in Koforidua, Eastern Region on the Presidential Transition Bill for members of the Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs of Parliament.

The workshop was organized by IEA, a policy think-tank to deliberate and make inputs on the Presidential Transitional Bill and the IEA anticipates that at the end of the consultations, the Members of Parliament (MPs) will gain an enhanced understanding of the bill to expedite prompt passage.

The Research Fellow said even though Ghana’s democratic credentials have been touted as a success story in Africa, the transfer of power from one democratically elected government to another has been fraught with administrative lapses leading to acrimony, suspicion and tension.

“In fact, 2001 was the first time in Ghana’s history when power was transferred from one political party to another through the electoral process. The absence of a transition blueprint played a part in the resulting confusion.”

He said in 2007 the IEA, in collaboration with political parties who have representations in Parliament, drafted a Transition Bill but once it could not be passed, the 2009 transition also lacked the force of law and therefore things were again done selectively.

“The combination of suspicion with the lack of a clear government inventory resulted in the seizure of bona fide assets of some members of outgoing administrations. The resulting effect was a poisoned relationship between members of the transition team, leading to confrontation instead of cooperation.”

He said the Bill stipulates timelines for vacating official accommodation, provides mechanisms to safeguard government assets through an inventory system, framework for submission of handing over notes as well as defines clearly what appointees whose tenure ends with that of an outgoing President should do.

Dr. Ofosu-Mensah said the Bill factored the concerns of all stakeholders and should be able to stand the test of time, saying “the final draft of the bill has benefitted from a wide consultation process and several amendments to include the concerns raised by political parties and civil society organizations.

He admitted that the Bill, when passed into law, might not be able to solve all the problems relating to the political transfer of power, which is a fundamental attribute but was certain that the Bill has an in-built mechanism capable of strengthening transparency and accountability.

He said the Bill stipulates periodic stock taking and a detailed inventory of executive assets and this may help to limit expropriation of state assets which allegedly occurred in the two transitions in the Fourth Republic.

Dr. Ofosu-Mensah said “a more accurate measure of the political commitment to improving the transition process will be reflected in the speedy passage of the draft legislation. The parliamentary consideration provides a window of opportunity to make unpleasant aspects of an ad hoc transition system history.”