‘President, Veep, Speaker all gone; who was in charge?’ – Minority declares constitutional crisis

The Minority in Parliament says Ghana was left without a President, a Vice President, or a Speaker of Parliament on May 12, 2025. And no one was sworn in to act in their absence.

They call it a constitutional crisis.

In a statement signed by Legal Counsel John Darko, the Minority accused the Mahama administration of breaching Article 60 of the 1992 Constitution.

“This represents a clear and egregious violation,” the statement said.

“The Constitution is clear: when the President and Vice President are both out of the country, the Speaker must be sworn in to act as President.”

The Minority pointed to the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Asare v. Attorney General, which confirmed that the country must never be left without a constitutionally mandated leader.

The Speaker must be sworn in by the Chief Justice in such cases.

But that did not happen.

The Speaker left Ghana on May 8. The Vice President had earlier travelled for medical care. Yet, the President also travelled without triggering any constitutional process to hand over power.

“It is public record that the Speaker had departed. The President, fully aware of this and aware of the Vice President’s absence, still left Ghana,” the statement said.

The Minority says this was not a mistake. It was intentional.

“Their conduct is not only unconstitutional; it is deliberate and calculated,” they said. “This administration has consistently treated the Constitution as an inconvenience.”

They accused the President and his team of acting with impunity, emboldened by their attacks on the Judiciary.

“They believe they have succeeded in weakening the Judiciary,” the statement said.

“Their overt and covert attacks on the Chief Justice have created a climate that undermines judicial independence and threatens the rule of law.”

The caucus called the President’s actions a “willful and wanton disregard” for the law. “This is one of the clearest demonstrations yet of this administration’s habitual violations of the Constitution.”

To drive their message home, the Minority cited former U.S. President Barack Obama: “Our Constitution is a remarkable, beautiful gift. But it’s really just a piece of parchment… It has no power on its own. We, the people, give it power with our participation.”

They say this message applies now more than ever.

“Those entrusted with safeguarding our Constitution have failed,” the statement said. “Ghana is still a fragile democracy. The progress of our democratic journey is neither guaranteed nor irreversible.”

They vowed to act.

“As vigilant custodians of the Constitution, we will expose and resist such violations,” they said.

“We will hold the President and his Vice accountable to their oath. Where necessary, we shall invoke the relevant provisions of law.”

According to the Minority, leaving Ghana without a head of state is more than a legal misstep. It is a threat to the country’s very stability.