Ghana has only one republic status – Kwesi Pratt

Renowned journalist and Managing Editor at the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr has described as hypocritical the constant reference to Ghana as a fourth republican state.

According to him, Ghana has only one republic status, earned from the British in 1960 and that had never been lost.

He explained, even though Ghana had seen series of coup d’état since 1960, it republican status had still remain intact and that was the fact Ghanaians needs be made aware.

“This whole idea of second, third and four republics is reposition in the extreme. Since 1st July 1960, Ghana has never lost its republic status. Even when there is been coup de tats, we have still been a republic and this whole idea, I don’t know where is coming from, of a second and third and fourth republic,” he said.

Mr Pratt Jnr made the comment on Pan African Television’s current affairs programme, Good Morning Africa on Thursday, January 28, 2021.

He noted it does not make any sense for people who were very aware of the country’s history to propagate such falsehood to Ghanaians.

“I don’t know where is coming from, it simply doesn’t make sense, we have one republic status which has never been lost” he indicated.

 We have only one republic but different constitution

The  Savanna Regional Secretary of the National Democratic Congress ( NDC), Salisu Be- Awuri Be who was also a panelist on the programme said Ghana was making a mistake in claiming a fourth republican status adding what the country had had was new constitutions after every military takeover and not a new republic.

“In my own estimation, I think that we are making a mistake in even saying that this is the fourth republic constitution, this is the third republic constitution, this is what republican constitution. But it is true that after every military take over there has been a new constitution.”

He emphasized Ghana earned it republican status when it freed itself from the British Empire and the control of the queen of England and that had remain same since 1960.

“A republican status can only be acquired when you take yourself from the control of a monarch or a certain type of individual who was in charge of affairs and today that level of freedom and the only time that we have had that opportunity is when we took ourselves from the British Empire and decided to take ourselves off the control of the queen and that happened on the first of July 1960, no body can take it away from us,” he explained.

“Subsequent to that, we have been a republican status and no other individual have ever taken control of the country which everybody is subservient to him, that has not happen and therefore I can say that we only have only one republic, we have not had any second or third or fourth republic. We have got different constitution” he emphasized.

Source: GhanaPlus.com