UG: Student proposes amendment of SRC constitution to deny executive officers voting right at GA

A final year student of the University of Ghana, Felix Tawiah Ayittah has proposed an amendment to the Constitution of the Students’ Representative Council (UG SRC).

Felix Tawiah Ayittah is on a quest to secure a declaration from the SRC Judicial Board which will deny executive officers their voting right at General Assembly (GA) meetings.

In a document addressed to the newly sworn-in Chief Justice of the SRC, Kwabena Addae-Marfo, he wants the board to ‘entirely’ remove from the UG SRC Constitution Article 8 (3)(b) which enables Executive officers of the Council to vote at GA meetings.

“The quorum for a General Assembly meeting shall be two (2) Executive Officers including the President or the Vice President, five (5) JCR Presidents of the traditional Halls of affiliation,” Article 8 (3)(b) of UG SRC stipulates.

The former Presidential candidate believes the act of continuing this activity amounts to a breach of the doctrine of separation of powers guaranteed by the 1992 constitution to which the Council’s constitution is subject.

“In the light of the Supreme Court decision in Tsatsu Tsikata v Chief Justice & Attorney General, under the concept of separation of powers, the three arms operate independently but certainly not in isolation.

“This point was stated clearly and succinctly by Kpegah JSC in a dissenting opinion in Amidu v President Kufuor that, although power is dispersed among the various organs of government, it should not be at the expense of harmony,” He argued in the document.

Article 16 of the University of Ghana SRC Constitution recognizes the President, the Vice President, the Secretary and the Treasurer as the four executive officers of the Council.

Nonetheless, Clause (1)(a) of Article 14 of the constitution further establishes an Executive Committee (EXECOM) which is made up of among others, the four executive officers, the Chairperson of the Women’s Commission and the President of Junior Common Rooms (JCRs) of the Halls of residence.

The document reiterated the idea of separateness but interdependence; autonomy but reciprocity among the legislative (GA), the Executive and the Judiciary.

“However, they [Executive officers] could be made members of the General Assembly without vote or allowed to form part of the quorum of the General Assembly,” Felix Ayittah added.

About the principle of separation of powers, it would be recalled that the Dean of Students’ Affairs requested the Speaker and the Clerk of the newly constituted General Assembly to forward the identity of its members to his office through the office of the acting SRC President Stephanie Naadu Antwi.

This directive did not sit well with the Speaker of the House, Stephen Awuah Pobi as he maintained that complying with that amount to a violation of the principle of separation of powers.