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Lawyer and former Gomoa West MP Alexander Abban says Ghana’s Constitution imposes a lifetime limit of two presidential terms, arguing that there is no legal basis for a president to seek office beyond that limit, whether the terms are served consecutively or not.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Friday (10 July), Abban dismissed a pending Supreme Court case seeking an interpretation of Article 66 of the Constitution as unnecessary, insisting the constitutional provision is clear.
“The Constitution doesn’t say consecutive terms,” he said.
“To my mind, a person who has been elected president has, in his lifetime, only eight years that he can serve as president.”
His comments come after a petitioner asked the Supreme Court to clarify whether the Constitution bars a president from serving more than two terms in total or only prohibits more than two consecutive terms.
President John Dramani Mahama, who served one term from 2013 to 2017 before returning to office in 2025, has repeatedly stated he has no intention of seeking another term beyond his current tenure.
Abban said the Constitution leaves little room for competing interpretations.
“I don’t think there is any serious interpretative matter for the Supreme Court to deal with,” he said.
According to him, the Supreme Court has consistently held that where constitutional language is clear and unambiguous, there is no need for judicial interpretation.
“When a constitutional provision is so clear, there is no need for the Supreme Court to exercise its interpretative jurisdiction over it,” he said.
Abban argued that Ghana’s constitutional framework allows an elected president only two terms, regardless of whether they are served consecutively or interrupted by another administration.
“I don’t think the Supreme Court’s time should be wasted on this,” he added.
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