The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dayi, and Member of Parliament’s Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, Rockson Dafeamakpor, is reported to have stated that the Supreme Court’s ruling on the birth certificate undermines the power of Parliament to make and amend laws.
Speaking in an interview with Samuel Eshun on the Happy Morning show on Happy FM, he asserted that the Supreme Court’s ruling had gone against the amendment of the National Identity Register Act, 2008 (Act 750), where Parliament approved that the National Identification Authority shall require an individual who applies for an entry to be made in the Register to submit their birth certificate as identification.
The MP further submitted that, “…. when the Supreme Court judges made this ruling, it seems they had forgotten about the law that was passed in Parliament. Parliament cannot pass a law on birth certificate only for the Supreme Court to reverse it and that is disturbing”.
So Rockson Dafeamakpor is a Lawyer?
Rockson is definitely NOT a lawyer, but he is also a lawyer.
It is obvious that the framers of the 1992 Constitution foresaw the situation where Parliament would be packed with ignoramuses like Rockson Dafeamakpor, hence, the provision under Article 2 (1) that a person who alleges that:
(a) “an enactment or anything contained in or done, under the authority of that or any other enactment;
or
(b) any act or omission of any person;
is inconsistent with, or is in contravention of a provision of this Constitution, may bring an action in the Supreme Court for a declaration to that effect.
(2) The Supreme Court shall, for the purposes of a declaration under clause (I) of this article, make such orders and give such directions as it may consider appropriate for giving effect, or enabling effect to be given, to the declaration so made”.
The above Article 2 provision of the 1992 Constitution is very clear and unambiguous in respect of any enactment of Parliament, being inferior to the unfettered powers of the Supreme Court.
In short, the Supreme Court of Ghana, has the power to declare any enactment of Parliament as null and void, if such an enactment was made in excess of the powers conferred on Parliament by the 1992 Constitution.
Even though the 1992 Constitution states in Article 1 (2) that it is, i.e. the 1992 Constitution is the Supreme law of Ghana, one may also succinctly put it that, the Supreme Court is the ‘Supreme Law’ of Ghana.
Rockson Dafeamakpor should answer this class one question: Why didn’t Parliament declare John Mahama as the winner of the 2012 Presidential Election?
It is apparent that Rockson Dafeamakpor, and other like minded individuals require legal re-education.
Alhassan Salifu Bawah
(son of an upright peasant farmer)
