Constitution Day is to celebrate ‘undisturbed’ period of constitutional rule – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Akufo-Addo in his maiden remarks about Government’s newly introduced Constitution Day public Holiday, has said the day is set aside to celebrate, the ‘longest’ period of constitutional rule in the country’s history.

According to President Nana Akufo-Addo, the newly instituted holiday is also to acknowledge the collective efforts of Ghanaiaans in upholding the tenets of democracy.

President Akufo-Addo in a tweet also said the celebration of the holiday is also an acknowledgement of the rule of law and the principles of constitutionalism in the country.

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“On this first #ConstitutionDay, we celebrate the longest, undisturbed period of stable, constitutional rule in the history of Ghana and acknowledge our collective efforts, as a country, in upholding the tenets of democracy, the rule of law and the principles of constitutionalism.” The President tweeted.

Ghana marks maiden ‘Constitution Day’ holiday

Ghana is today [January 7, 2019] marking the maiden Constitution Day public Holiday.

The day has been set aside by the Akufo-Addo administration to recognize the coming into force of the 1992 constitution and the beginning of the 4th Republic.

The government has urged the public to use the day to reflect on the country’s democracy.

As part of government’s activities to mark the day, the Ministry for Information is holding a public lecture under the theme, “Constitutionalism in The Fourth Republic Towards Functional Performance”.

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The lecture will be delivered by the rector of GIMPA, Prof. Bondzi-Simpson.

The government presented a bill before parliament to amend the Public Holidays Act to include January 7, August 4 and September 21 as statutory public holidays.

It also made July 1, formerly a Republic Day Holiday, a commemorative day just as May 25, which was AU Day Holiday.

CPP shoots down Nana Addo’s August 4 holiday; threatens to fight it

Some have criticized the government for these changes, with the Convention People’s Party, CPP, accusing government of seeking to alter history with ulterior motives.

The party in particular described the new August 4 holiday proposed in the Public Holiday Amendment Bill as inconsistent with the history of the country. In a memo sent to parliament and signed by the General Secretary of the party, James Kwabena Bomfeh Jnr, the CPP further accused government of “creating an erroneous impression with regards to our history of the country after proposing the public holiday amendment bill 2018.”

The party also argues that the public amendment bill will serve as a wrong precedent and a disincentive to education in the country.

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‘Nana Addo is playing with fire; we’ll resist his new holidays’ – Ablakwa

The Minority in Parliament had said it was mobilizing a broad-based coalition to put pressure on the government to withdraw the Public Holidays Amendment Act.

The North Tongu MP, in a Citi News interview with Duke Mensah Opoku said the minority was going to vehemently resist the attempt by government to have the holidays changed.