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Why the Ghana Bar Association boycotted the Consultative Assembly that drafted the 1992 Constitution

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Cover of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana Cover of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana

Ghana as a state is governed by the 1992 Constitution, which came into force on January 7, 1993.

The 1992 Constitution is the supreme law of Ghana and any other law found to be inconsistent with any of its provisions is invalid.

The 1992 Constitution was drafted by a Consultative Assembly set up by the Consultative Assembly Law, 1991 (P.N.D.C.L. 253) of the Provisional National Defence Council.

The Consultative Assembly, which comprised Ghanaians from all walks of life, was led by a committee of experts chaired by Dr. S.K.B. Asante and included Dr. Agyeman-Badu, Justice Annie Jiagge, Chinery-Hesse, Ebo Bentsi-Enchill, Afari Gyan, Dr. E.V.O. Dankwa, Dr. Charles Jebuni, and Ofori B., according to ghlawtrends.com.

The Consultative Assembly submitted the draft Constitution for the Republic of Ghana to the P.N.D.C. on March 31, 1992.

The constitution was submitted for a national referendum held throughout Ghana on April 28, 1992, and approved by the people of Ghana.

Do you know that the professional association of lawyers in Ghana, including legal practitioners as well as magistrates, the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), refused to be part of the Consultative Assembly that drafted the constitution?

According to ghlawtrends.com, the GBA did not take part in the Consultative Assembly that drafted the constitution because they thought the assembly could be easily influenced by the then P.N.D.C.

The GBA preferred a Constituent Assembly to the Consultative Assembly.

“In 1992, the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) boycotted the Consultative Assembly meeting, set up to debate the draft constitution.

“The GBA preferred a Constituent Assembly & not a Consultative Assembly which they thought could be easily influenced by the PNDC,” ghlawtrends.com wrote in a post on its X handle.

Unlike a Consultative Assembly, which provides more representation and performs more of an advisory role, the Constituent Assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled to draft or revise a constitution.

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