Ghana Marks 25 Years Of Fourth Republic Today with Thanksgiving Service
Ghana is celebrating the Silver Jubilee of its Fourth Republican status with a thanksgiving service at the Independence Square in Accra, Toaday Sunday, January 7.
The Thanksgiving service appreciate the "goodness of the Lord" for a stable democracy under the Fourth Republic.
The Fourth Republican journey started with the promulgation of the 1992 Constitution, followed by an uninterrupted multiparty democracy, indeed that is a silver jubilee to celebrate.
A journey of democratic practice where governments have smoothly transferred power from one administration to another, is rare in African politics where elections are seen as a make or break affair.
The first regime of the Fourth Republic saw the reign of Former President Jerry John Rawlings, whose leadership transitioned from a military government to a constitutional rule in response to demands for a more democratic process concerning the governing of the country.
After two terms in office, barred by the constitution from standing in any election, Rawlings endorsed his Vice-President late Professor John Atta Mills as presidential candidate in 2000.
Other leaders under the Fourth Republic are Former President John Agyekum Kufuor, late Professor John Evans Atta Mills and Former President John Dramani Mahama.
The Fourth Republic is currently headed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who was elected in December 2016.
The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana that came into effect on January 7, 1993, provides the basic charter for the country’s fourth attempt at republican democratic government since independence in 1957.
It declares Ghana to be a unitary republic with sovereignty residing in the Ghanaian people. Drawn up with the intent of preventing future coups, dictatorial government, and one party states, it is designed to foster tolerance and the concept of power-sharing.
The constitution reflects the lessons drawn from the abrogated constitutions of 1957, 1960, 1969, and 1979, and it incorporates provisions and institutions drawn from British and United States constitutional models.
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