The Member of Parliament for Okaikwei Central, Patrick Yaw Boamah, has stated that the Supreme Court’s decision to scrap the delegates system and allow all registered party members in good standing to vote in presidential and parliamentary primaries is an order that cannot be disregarded.
The lawyer and lawmaker noted that when the apex court of the land issues directives or orders, citizens and affected entities are bound to respect them.
According to him, political parties in Ghana have no other alternative than to comply with the ruling.
Speaking with Kwabena Agyapong, host of Frontline, in a yet to be aired interview, the MP stated, “If the highest court of the land issues directives or orders, who are you as a practitioner to say otherwise? We respect the orders of the court.”
He noted that the court’s decision must pave the way for political parties to initiate constitutional reforms and amendments to their respective constitutions to implement the directives effectively.
He added that the parties have been given a one-year timeline to ensure full compliance.
“It calls for the political parties to embark on major constitutional amendments to their respective constitutions so they will be able to implement the decision of the Supreme Court,” he said.
He emphasised that the court granted the parties a year to put their houses in order, meaning political parties—especially the New Patriotic Party (NPP)—must do their best to accommodate the directives.
“The Supreme Court has granted us a year to put our house in order. Thankfully, the NPP has conducted its presidential primary and elected its flagbearer. We are currently preparing to elect our regional and national executive officers by August and September. If we are able to go according to plan, the NPP can even organise its parliamentary primaries within a period before the decision of the court takes effect.
“So we have to do all these things so that we can reform our constitution to be in line with the decision of the court. It will come with some regulations or modalities because issues of who is a registered member, who is a member in good standing, at what point the party can refer to someone as being a member in good standing and qualified to vote; those are modalities the party ought to work on.”
He urged the party to establish a committee to receive proposals from members, starting from the grassroots level through to the constituency, regional, and national levels, before bringing them to the party conference for a final decision.
“So we have a long way to go. We have a constitutional amendment to deal with. We have a constitutional and legal committee of the party and the electoral affairs committee to look at some of these issues and advise the party.”
When asked whether the decision of the court will come at a high cost to political parties, he responded, “Democracy is very expensive. Every reform, action, or activity embarked on by any political party comes at a cost. But as a party, we must do as much as possible to ensure that our modalities and arrangements don’t cost much to stakeholders in order to elect candidates who have what it takes and are the best people to lead the party in the constituencies as parliamentary candidates and also as our presidential candidate.”
Most importantly, he admonished political parties to put in place strict measures to prevent individuals from registering as members across multiple political divides.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana