Speaker Has Suspended Part Of The Constitution; It Is A Dangerous Precedent - Kwame Akuffo

Private Legal Practitioner, Lawyer Kwame Akuffo has described the refusal of the Right Honorable Edward Doe Adjaho to be sworn-in as acting President of the Republic of Ghana per the Constitution as a dangerous precedent in the country. According to him, insofar as the prevailing event is going on, the Chief Justice, Mrs. Georgina Theodora Wood and the Speaker of Parliament, Mr. Doe Adjaho are in cahoots with Constitutional lawlessness. Speaking on Okay Fm�s Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, Lawyer Kwame Akuffo conceded that the law that allows the Speaker of Parliament to be sworn-in whenever the President and his Vice travel outside the country bothers on absurdity, but insisted the law must be respected as the Supreme Court in 2003 interpreted that the Speaker shall be sworn-in as acting President. He however argued that it was wrong for the Chief Justice to render advisory opinions to the Speaker of Parliament as her core mandate is to sit in court to adjudicate on cases; adding that if Mrs. Theodora Wood indeed gave that advice to the Speaker, then she has acted contrary to the decision of the court over which she is presiding. �I was surprised for two reasons; in law, the CJ has no power to render advisory opinions to anybody. Her duty is to sit in court to adjudicate cases and for the CJ to give an opinion which is contrary to the decision of the court over which she presides are my worries�..insofar as the prevailing event is going on, what they are doing is constitutional lawlessness because you cannot single-handedly say that what the SC has said, you don�t like it but rather you prefer to do it differently. If we do that, we will destroy the law��Doe Adjaho by his conduct has suspended part of the constitution with respect to the swearing-in because that is not what the Constitution say�, he charged. He further enlightened that inasmuch as foreign travels are essential part of the President duties, the need to follow the laws in the Constitution is paramount no matter how absurdity the laws may appear.