Attorney-General And Minister For Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has reiterated that the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL) issue is the result of a series of constitutional anomalies which the Electoral Commission sought to cure, following the placement of the four areas within the Buem Constituency in the Jasikan District in the Oti Region, and not a creation of government, as is being bandied about.
Responding to a question from the Member of Parliament for North Tongu Constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, on government’s legal position on the plight of the people of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi (SALL) because they do not have a representation in the 8th Parliament, the AG defended that “It would thus be misplaced for one to consider the solution to the problem as residing in the bosom of the government.”
To put the SALL matter to rest, the AG stated in Parliament, yesterday, that “Presently, even if the Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) (Amendment) Instrument, 2023, and the District Electoral Areas and Designation of Units (Amendment) Instrument, 2023, come into force in accordance with clause 7 of article 11, the creation of a new Guan Constituency consisting of the SALL areas shall only come into effect upon the next dissolution of Parliament, i.e. 6th January, 2025. This is the effect of article 47(6) of the Constitution.”
Alternatively, he indicated, “if representation of the people of SALL in Parliament in this term of Parliament is desired, the way to go is to do the following two things:
- A revocation of L. I. 2416 establishing the Guan District, which would imply that the residents of SALL would remain under the Jasikan District; and
- An annulment of the 2020 Parliamentary election organized for the Buem Constituency to allow residents of the four (4) SALL communities qualified to vote under article 42 of the Constitution, to exercise their right to elect a Member of Parliament to represent them, since C. I. 128 used for the conduct of the 2020 Parliamentary elections, had already placed the SALL areas under Buem Constituency.
A recognition of the current status of the SALL areas as part of the Buem Constituency (within the Jasikan District) and an annulment of the Buem parliamentary election in order to allow the residents of SALL to vote for a Member of Parliament in the Buem constituency, will cure the mischief of lack of representation of the SALL people in Parliament for this term of Parliament, until the new C. I. seeking to create the new Guan Constituency comes into force.”
Narrating the genesis of the issue that seems to a thorny one for the EC, the AG said on 15th February, 2019, by Constitutional Instrument No. 112, the boundaries of the Volta Region were altered, after due recourse to the mandatory procedures stipulated in article 5 of the Constitution, resulting in the creation of the Oti Region. The traditional areas of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi ceased to be part of the Volta Region as they were included in the territories constituted by law into the Oti Region.
The formation of the new Oti region had the further consequence that, even though administratively, Hohoe District remained in the Volta Region, parts of the Hohoe Constituency (specifically the SALL areas) had become a part of the Oti Region by dint of C. I. 112. In point of fact, the SALL areas were placed under the Jasikan District in the Oti Region. A clear constitutional violation was imminent. Article 47(2) of the Constitution provides thus:
“No constituency shall fall within more than one region”.
Mr. Speaker, he continued; this situation necessitated the enactment of a new constitutional instrument to alter the boundaries of the Hohoe Constituency as the continued placement of SALL within the Hohoe Constituency, as indicated above, was going to be a flagrant violation of article 47(2).
The Supreme Court on 24th June, 2020 in Suit No. J6/01/2020 entitled Valentine Edem Dzatse Vrs. 1. Henry Ametefe 2. The Chairman, Hohoe Constituency (NDC) 3. The Secretary, Hohoe Constituency (NDC) 4. Professor Margaret Kweku 5. The Regional Electoral Officer (Ho) 6. The Municipal Electoral Officer (Hohoe) indeed underscored the necessity for the SALL areas to cease to be part of the Hohoe Constituency in the Volta Region, and for a new constituency to be created for them, when it held at pages 5 – 6 of the judgment as follows:
“We therefore hold that it is the Constitutional Instrument on constituency boundaries that should be aligned to the regional boundaries and not the other way round. It is our considered view that if the framers of the Constitution had intended it otherwise, they would have expressly made Article 5 subject to Article 47(2) of the Constitution … What this means is that whenever regional boundaries are changed in a manner that affects existing constituencies, the constituency boundaries have to be amended to align with the new regional boundaries.
For the reasons explained above, we hold that, as things stand now, CI 95 is inconsistent with Article 47(2) of the Constitution to the extent that the traditional areas of Santrokofi, Akpalu, Likpe and Lolobi which fall within the Oti Region are stated to be part of the Hohoe Constituency which is in the Volta Region and to the extent of that inconsistency CI 95 is unconstitutional.”
In accordance with this clear decision of the Supreme Court of Ghana, the Electoral Commission set out to realign the boundaries of the Hohoe Constituency and to place the SALL areas within a constituency in the Oti Region.
A new constitutional instrument, C. 1. 128, was enacted. This C. I. placed the SALL areas within the Buem Constituency with its headquarters being Jasikan in the Oti Region. This situation should not have created any problem at all and should have ensured a due exercise by the people of SALL of their right to participate in the parliamentary election in the Buem Constituency in the December, 2020 elections.
New District – the “SALL problem”
Mr. Speaker, the problems of the SALL people began in November, 2020, when Parliament allowed the Local Government (Guan District Assembly) (Establishment) Instrument, 2020 (L. I. 2416) for the creation of the Guan District, which had been laid before Parliament on Tuesday, 6th October, 2020, to come into effect. On Monday, 9th November, 2020 (less than a month before the December 2020 elections), L. I. 2416 came into force after having satisfied the constitutional prerequisite of being laid before Parliament for twenty-one sitting days and same had not been annulled by Parliament. It is pertinent to note that the areas carved into the Guan District by L. I. 2416, were hitherto, part of the Jasikan District.
Consequent on the enactment of L. I. 2416, the four traditional areas of SALL were placed under the new Guan District and ceased to be part of the Jasikan District.
This development necessarily required the Electoral Commission to create a new constituency for the SALL areas (called the Guan Constituency), as the Commission took the view that, to allow for them to remain within the Buem Constituency would unleash another constitutional anomaly of having the Member of Parliament (MP) for Buem being a member of both the Jasikan and Guan District Assemblies at the same time. It is noted that article 242 (b) of the Constitution provides that:
“A District Assembly shall consist of….
(b) the Member or Members of Parliament for the Constituencies that falls within the area of authority of the District Assembly as members without right to vote.”
The provision is repeated in section 5 (1) (c) of the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936) as amended by Act 940.
A constituency must therefore fall within the area of authority of a District Assembly. The Electoral Commission interpreted this to mean that a member of Parliament is required to be a member of one District Assembly and no more.
Efforts by Electoral Commission to address the anomaly
The Electoral Commission in its quest to ensure a due exercise of the franchise by the people of SALL, proceeded to take steps to create a constituency for the areas forming part of the newly created Guan District, i.e. SALL, by amending the Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) Regulations, 2020 (C.I. 128) as well as the District Electoral Areas and Designation of Units Regulations, 2019 (C.I. 119). Copies of the Draft Constitutional Instruments were submitted to the Office of the Attorney General by correspondence dated 13th November, 2020.
Subsequently, the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice by a letter dated 18th November, 2020, forwarded the draft Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) (Amendment) Instrument, 2020 and comments thereon to the Electoral Commission for their consideration. The then Attorney-General particularly drew the attention of the Electoral Commission to the limited time available for the dissolution of the Seventh Parliament, having regard to clause (7) of article 11 of the Constitution which requires twenty-one sitting days for the draft Instrument to come into force after being laid in Parliament.
On 26th November, 2020, by a letter dated 25th November, 2020, the Electoral Commission requested the Attorney-General to finalise the draft Constitutional Instrument. Further to the receipt of the correspondence, the Office of the Attorney-General finalised work on the draft Constitutional Instrument and forwarded same to the Electoral Commission under cover of correspondence dated 30th November, 2020.
Indeed, as the Office of Attorney-General had earlier cautioned in its letter of 18th November, 2020, processes leading to its creation could not materialize since Parliament went on recess for the December, 2020 elections on 9th November, 2020 (the same day that the L. I. creating the Guan District – L. I. 2416, came into effect), implying that the Constitutional Instrument for the creation of the Guan Constituency could not be laid before Parliament. The record shows that Parliament resumed only on Monday, 14th December, 2020, a week after the election.
In order to prevent what it considered the occurrence of a constitutional crisis if the residents of the Guan District, i.e. the SALL areas, voted for a member of Parliament in the Buem Constituency (part of Jaskian District), on the eve of the 7th December General Elections, the Electoral Commission directed the residents of the Guan District to only vote in the Presidential and not the Parliamentary election.
In my view, the decision of the Electoral Commission to prevent the SALL people from voting in the Buem Constituency for a Member of Parliament was not constitutionally sound and, with the greatest respect, raised genuine questions about the legitimacy of the Buem Parliamentary contest. The SALL people should have voted as part of the Buem Constituency for a Member of Parliament.
When Parliament resumed sitting on 14th December, 2020, the Electoral Commission could not lay the amendment to C.I. 128, for want of the mandatory twenty-one (21) sitting days for same to come into force before the dissolution of the 7th Parliament on the midnight of Wednesday, 6th January, 2021. The Commission therefore was compelled to wait for the 8th Parliament to be sworn-in on 7th January, 2021 before the Constitutional Instrument to amend C. I. 128 could be laid before Parliament.
Measures to solve the SALL Problem from 2021
In 2021, the Electoral Commission, with the guidance of the Attorney-General, started the process for the creation of a new Constituency for the Guan District. The Commission held a consultative meeting with stakeholders in the new Guan District for a proposed name and headquarters of the new Constituency. The stakeholders unanimously agreed on a constituency name, Guan Constituency with the headquarters being Likpe-Mate.
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to inform then House that, with my active support, the Electoral Commission, has taken fruitful steps to ensure representation for the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi Traditional areas in Parliament. Further to a pre-laying meeting held on 7th June, 2023 to consider the Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) (Amendment) Instrument, 2023, and the District Electoral Areas and Designation of Units (Amendment) Instrument, 2023, signed and dated copies of the Instruments were submitted by the Attorney-General to the Clerk of Parliament for laying, under cover of correspondence dated 16th August, 2023. By correspondence dated 2nd November, 2023, Parliament has indicated that the Instruments have indeed been laid in Parliament on 31st October, 2023.
The District Electoral Areas and Designation of Units (Amendment) Instrument, 2023, seeks to realign the Jasikan and Guan districts, placing the electoral areas in the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi Traditional Areas within the Guan District.
