Francis-Xavier Sosu, the Member of Parliament for Madina, has stated that the Criminal Offences Amendment Act, which seeks to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment has the backing of President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
The lawmaker says he is hopeful Parliament will pass the bill into law.
At a debate on the amendment Bill in Parliament Friday, July 14, 2023, the members were left divided during the consideration.
The Madina MP said President Akufo-Addo for the first time voted to support the scrapping of the death penalty from the statutes of countries across the world at the United Nations while upholding the international conventions protecting human rights.
“The president at the UN voted in favour of the abolishment of the death penalty for the first time, and he has even made public statements in support of the abolishment. It was the president that called for a cross-party approach to passing this bill when stakeholders called on him, and so he fully endorses and supports the position,” he said on Accra-based Citi TV.
Citing the case of Myanmar, Mr. Sosu said even though Ghana has not implemented the law since 1992, a crooked government could dwell on it to hunt its opponents.
The government in 1991 said there were not going to be executions again, but 12 people were executed by firing squad in 1993 and from colonial times till 1993, 37 people were killed.
“When you take the case of Myanmar, the country had not used the law for 42 years, but it was there on its books and last year when there was a military takeover, they used it against their opponents and gave legal reasons where four leaders were killed, and a hundred others were convicted to death.”
