The Citizens’ Platform on Constitutional Reforms (CPCR) has called on the government to introduce a Constitutional Reform Implementation and Roadmap Act to provide a legally binding framework for the implementation of proposed changes to Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Platform said a clear roadmap was necessary to establish timelines, responsibilities and procedures for the reform process and prevent it from being abandoned because of changes in government or political priorities.
Addressing the media in Accra on Tuesday, 15 September 2026, the CPCR said the proposed legislation should be the first step in the implementation of the constitutional review recommendations.
“We believe that the implementation process should not remain a statement of good intentions or a process that can be changed at any time. This is why we are asking that the process should have the force of law,” it said.
The Platform, a coalition convened by CDD-Ghana, Democracy Hub and the STAR-Ghana Foundation, said past experiences demonstrated the need for a legally protected implementation framework.
It cited the failure to carry forward amendments drafted following the 2012 implementation committee established after the Professor Fiadjoe constitutional review exercise, as well as the cancellation of a proposed referendum on local government reforms in 2019 after consensus between the two main political parties could not be achieved.
“Setting up a committee is not enough. Preparing bills is not enough. And announcing a referendum is not enough,” the CPCR said.
“Without clear rules, firm timelines and broad national agreement, even the most promising reform process can lose momentum and eventually come to nothing.”
The Platform said the proposed roadmap should specify the order in which reforms would be undertaken, the institutions responsible for each stage and the time within which each task must be completed.
It said the framework should cover public consultation, the preparation of legislation, parliamentary consideration, civic education and referendums where required.
According to the CPCR, the scale of the proposed reforms makes a legally binding framework particularly important. It said more than 50 constitutional provisions were affected, including more than 20 entrenched clauses, while over 14 bills would need to be prepared.
“A reform programme of this scale cannot realistically be completed within the life of a single Parliament,” the Platform said.
It also called for the mandate of the Constitution Review Implementation Committee to be clearly defined as one of consensus-building rather than simply translating the government’s position into amendment bills.
The CPCR urged the government to pause bills that could move ahead of the Committee’s consultations and report, specifically mentioning the Conduct of Public Officers Bill.
It said the Committee should have the authority to recommend changes to the government’s positions where the national interest required it.
“If the Government restricts the Committee, such that the entire process simply enacts what the government has chosen and the rest are set aside, the reform can begin to feel like it has been hijacked by a political party,” the Platform asserted.
The CPCR further urged the government to ensure that the reform process remained open to civil society, organised labour, political parties and other stakeholders.
It said the Constitution belonged to the Ghanaian people and that citizens must be informed, consulted and given meaningful opportunities to influence the final outcome.
“We approach these engagements in good faith and with an open mind,” the Platform said, announcing plans to engage the President, opposition leadership, Parliament and the Constitution Review Implementation Committee.
