Let’s work towards a smooth and peaceful transition

Yesterday the joint transition team overseeing a smooth transfer of power from the current government to the incoming government had its maiden meeting at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC).

The Daily Graphic lauds the government for facilitating the transition of power between the two governments by inaugurating the joint transition team last Sunday, just two days after the Electoral Commission (EC) had announced the results of the elections and declared the winner.

Indeed, by that singular act, we have shown to the whole world once again that we are the beacon of democracy in the sub-region.

At the meeting yesterday, the incoming government’s side of the team raised certain issues and we think they call for a re-look to be taken at the Transition Act.

Some of the issues raised were the recruitment of people into the security services, the conversion of temporary staff and political assistants into permanent public service workers, the award of new contracts after the election results had been announced and the procurement and sale of national assets, also after the declaration of results.

The Head of the outgoing government’s side of the transition team, Mr Julius Debrah, also stated that in spite of the fact that all the government ministries should have completed their hand-over notes by last September, most of them were yet to submit their notes due to some hiccups.

It may seem that the Transition Act has already been made better, with Parliament passing an amended (2016) Presidential Transition Bill last October, referred to as the Presidential (Transition) Act 2012.

Under the act, the outgoing President and his vice are required to vacate their official bungalows one month before the swearing-in of the new President on January 7.

It also grants the Administrator General legal powers to forcibly evict an outgoing President and his or her vice when they exceed the grace period.

These amendments notwithstanding, we believe that there is the need for further fine-tuning to reflect emerging trends such as were cited at the transition team meeting.

We believe that every form of ambiguity in the act must be removed by spelling out in clear terms the dos and don’ts of outgoing governments once there is a government in waiting or the results of an election have been announced and a winner declared.

The Daily Graphic is also of the view that clear timelines for ministries to prepare and deliver their hand-over notes should not only be spelt out but also measures that should be taken against any minister who fails to adhere to that timeline must be indicated to ensure compliance with those timelines.

That way, it is our firm belief that transition teams will have all the materials they need to ensure seamless transitions between governments.

It is gratifying to note that both teams constituting the joint transition team have pledged to work towards a seamless and flawless transition and we pray that they are successful in their work.

However, we ask that due process is followed by both teams to ensure not only a smooth and peaceful transition but also  beautiful inauguration of the incoming President and his government on January 7, 2017.