Akuffo Addo Should Have Known Better, Says Political Analyst
A political analyst, Abdul Salaam, has expressed his opinion on the recent Supreme Court ruling that deemed the President’s directive for the former Auditor General to proceed on leave as unconstitutional. According to Salaam, the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, being an astute lawyer and well-versed in the laws of the country, should have been aware of the implications.
“The law stipulates that the office of the Auditor General should remain independent, so the President should not have instructed him to proceed on leave. It is an affront to our democracy,” Salaam remarked during an interview with George Adjei on Nkwantannanso.
He also criticized the judiciary for not acting swiftly and recognizing the time-sensitive nature of the issue.
“The Judiciary should have displayed more astuteness and realized the urgency of the matter,” he stated.
In a unanimous decision announced on May 31, 2023, the Supreme Court of Ghana declared President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s directive for former Auditor-General Daniel Domelevo to proceed on leave as unconstitutional.
The court further ruled that the President had acted in violation of the constitution by appointing an acting Auditor General while Domelevo was still in office.
As the ruling came after Domelevo’s retirement from office, no consequential orders were issued by the court. However, the decision holds significant importance in upholding the principles of constitutional governance.
Presided over by Justice Nene Amegatcher, the panel included distinguished judges such as Justices Prof Ashie Kotey, Mariama Owusu, Lovelace Johnson, Gertrude Torkornoo, Prof Henrietta Mensah Bonsu, and Emmanuel Kulendi.
The legal suit leading to the court’s ruling was initiated by nine civil society organizations, which played a crucial role in challenging the constitutionality of the President’s directive.
The organizations involved in the lawsuit are the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), Citizen Movement Ghana, Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP), Parliamentary Network Africa, Penplusbyte, Media Foundation for West Africa, SEND Ghana, and One Ghana Movement.
President Akufo-Addo had directed Domelevo on July 1, 2020, to take his accumulated leave of 167 days.
