NPP Heads to Supreme Court Over Mahama’s 2028 Presidential Eligibility

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has taken its case to the Supreme Court, challenging President John Dramani Mahama's eligibility to run for the 2028 presidential election. At the heart of the dispute is the interpretation of the country's constitutional provisions regarding presidential term limits. The party seeks a ruling on whether the two-term limit applies exclusively to consecutive terms or also covers non-consecutive terms.

If the court rules in favor of the NPP, it would mean that a person can serve as President for only two four-year terms, regardless of whether the terms are served back-to-back or with breaks in between.

The NPP argues that allowing a former President to serve multiple non-consecutive terms would violate the constitutional framework designed to limit presidential tenure. They contend that such an interpretation would be an unconstitutional amendment of the Constitution, akin to adding words not present in the original text. The party points to the 22nd Amendment of the United States Constitution and similar developments in other African nations as evidence that constitutional limits on presidential terms help maintain political stability.

Additionally, the NPP raises the 2011 report of the Constitution Review Commission, which recommended a clarification on the matter, calling for a ruling that a person who has served two presidential terms would be ineligible for re-election. The party's solicitor, Godfred Yeboah Dame of Dame & Partners, filed the writ of summons and statement of case on behalf of the party. The Attorney-General has been named as the defendant.

Beyond the presidential term limit inquiry, the NPP is also seeking clarification on the eligibility of a Vice-President who assumes the presidency for more than half of the remaining term of a predecessor. They seek a declaration that such a person would be only eligible to contest for one additional presidential term. The NPP warns that an interpretation of the two-term limit as only applying to consecutive terms could undermine the democratic principles that underpin Ghana's political system.