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Introduction
Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh-Dompreh, has urged President Nana Akufo-Addo to postpone the current transition process. During a press conference on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, he pointed to outstanding disagreements over the outcomes of parliamentary elections in his constituency.
Mr Annoh-Dompreh encouraged President Akufo-Addo to proceed with the transition only after the results for constituencies such as Fanteakwa North, Akwatia, Suhum, and Nsawam-Adoagyiri were announced. Several news outlets, including thecustodianghonline.com and ghanaiantimes.com have published this statement.
“The transition process should be stopped till the EC completes its work, I implore His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Additionally, President Mahama needs to make sure his followers maintain composure during this crucial period,” Mr Dompreh said. Despite this, DUBAWA sought to bring up an understanding of what the law says about setting up a transition team.
What the law says about the setup of a transition team
In Ghana, the law that governs the transition process is the Presidential (Transition) Act of 2012 (Act 845). Section 1 of Act 845 states that within twenty-four hours after the declaration of the presidential results, the incumbent president, Nana Akufo-Addo, shall appoint representatives to the Transition Team.
This indicates that a transitional team must be formed when the electoral commissioner announces the presidential results within 24 hours.
That is why both the outgoing and incoming governments, led by Akufo-Addo and John Mahama, respectively, announced a transition team on December 10, right within the 24-hour timeframe after the Electoral Commissioner Jean Mensa announced John Mahama as president-elect of Ghana on December 9, 2024.
Again, according to section 3 of the act, the Transition Team shall first meet not later than forty-eight hours after the declaration of the presidential election result, per article 63 of the 1992 Constitution, which states that a candidate can only become president when he/she gets more than fifty per cent of the total number of valid votes cast at the election.
These are why the Transition Team can still function even though Nsawam-Adoagyiri is having disputes over its parliamentary seats. Because the contested results are for the parliamentary election, there is no basis for the team to be halted because there have been no issues with the presidential results.
Conclusion
The call by Frank Annoh-Dompreh, Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, to postpone the current transition process due to outstanding disagreements over parliamentary election results in his constituency does not stand in law.
This report was produced under the DUBAWA “Combating Election Misinformation and Disinformation in Ghana’s 2024 Elections” Project aimed at promoting a culture of truth and verification ahead of the 2024 General Elections with support from the Federal Republic of Germany in Ghana.
