Dr. Asah-Asante Warns Against Mahama's Third Term Bid
Political Scientist Dr. Kwame Asah-Asante has firmly rejected any suggestion that former President John Mahama could attempt a third term in office. Speaking on the AM Show on Wednesday, December 10, Dr. Asah-Asante emphasized his strong opposition to altering the constitution to extend presidential tenure.
“I am fully against any idea, however small it may be, from any quarter, with a day increase in the tenure of the presidency of Mr Mahama. No, I don’t want to know, and I don’t want to hear that,” he stated.
Dr. Asah-Asante warned of the potential dangers of such an action, drawing examples from other African nations. “As a student of democracy, we have seen from the sub‑region, from Africa, the difficulties that countries faced when they tinkered with their constitution to allow for a third term for their leaders,” he explained. “We don’t want that to happen here.”
He highlighted that Mr. Mahama himself has repeatedly dismissed any ambitions for a third term, stating, “Mahama himself has said that he’s not interested, and that is, for me, the end of the road.” Dr. Asah-Asante added that he would be greatly surprised if the former president were to reconsider. “I’ll be surprised that Mahama will come back one day and say that, yes, the good people said I should come back, and I’m for it. Even if the people say so, I’ll be so surprised.”
The Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana also cautioned the National Democratic Congress (NDC) against even considering such a move. “I believe that the NDC will not dare to move this country into a third term, because nobody is going to sit down for a third term to happen in this country. We will use all the legal means to scatter all those attempts and all that,” he declared.
Dr. Asah-Asante criticized those within the country and the NDC promoting the idea, questioning their motives. “What is fuelling this is a section of the people in this country and some members of the NDC who are saying Mahama for a third term and all that. Those people should think about this state and then condemn themselves that they are unfair to the president. The president himself said I’m not interested. Why are you saying this?”
He underscored the wisdom behind the two-term limit enshrined in Ghana’s constitution. “They don’t know the wisdom behind the premise of this constitution and how they developed it and say that, look, it doesn’t matter who you are. You can be the Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, with all type of ideas that are very legitimate and strong, but you cannot go beyond two terms. For now, let us stay our course.”
According to Dr. Asah-Asante, two terms are sufficient for any leader to establish a lasting legacy. “If you are a leader and you have something to share, you have something to leave as a legacy, you don’t need three terms. The constitution doesn’t give anybody two terms. It gives you only one. By dint of hard work, the people will add one term to it,” he explained.
He further warned that extending presidential tenure could create opportunities for abuse of power. “People have forgotten the fact that if you encourage this and this thing comes to stay and you have a bad leader, all of us will end up being ghosts in this country. There will not be any Ghana because you have a brutal leader and with a long tenure, you can’t survive,” he cautioned.
Dr. Asah-Asante concluded by reaffirming his commitment to upholding democratic principles. “Let us not go on that trajectory at all. And as I have said, we will use all legal means to resist any attempt, any thoughts of it within the public space, because this is no, no, no. I stand for democracy and I stand for two terms, nothing more, nothing less.”
Image Source: MYJOYONLINE
