President John Evans Atta Mills on Wednesday swore-in Kumbu Nayiri Naa Alhaji Iddrisu Abu as member of the Constitutional Review Commission.
He becomes the ninth member of the Commission, which is charged to ascertain from the Ghanaian public, their views on the operations of the 1992 Constitution, its weaknesses and strengths.
President Mills said the review was to bring the 1992 Constitution of Ghana in line with modern trends.
He said as a non-partisan body, the Commission must be fair and carry out its duty in the best interest of the nation.
The Commission, chaired by Professor Albert K. Fiadjoe, a Professor of Public Law, would carry out its enquiry in accordance with the Constitutional Instrument (C.I.) 64 and chapter 23 of the 1992 Constitution.
The body would also articulate the concerns of the public on amendments that may be required for a comprehensive review of the Constitution, make recommendations to the government for considerations and provide a draft Bill for possible amendments to the 1992 Constitution.
The other members of the Commission are Osabarimma Kwesi Atta II, Paramount Chief of Cape Coast, Mr. Akenten Appiah-Menka, lawyer and industrialist and Mrs. Sabina Ofori-Boateng, consultant to the Legislative Drafting Unit, Office of Parliament.
The rest are the Very Reverend Prof. Samuel Adjepong, President, Methodist University College Ghana and chairman, African Peer Review Mechanism Governing Council, Dr. Nicholas Amponsah, Senior Lecturer, Department of Political Science, University of Ghana, Mr. Gabriel Pwamang, legal practitioner and Mrs. Jean Mensa, Executive Director, Institute of Economic Affairs.
Naa Abu thanked the President for the confidence reposed in him and the team.
Inaugurating the Commission, President Mills said that after almost 20 years of operating the 1992 Constitution, there was the need for Ghanaians to look at the provisions of the legal document and decide those that require amendments.
The review, he noted, would enable the nation to operate its democratic values in an efficient and progressive manner.
President Mills said that even though the inauguration of the Commission was done by his government, it did not represent the National Democratic Congress and that it represented the nation since membership representatives all shades of Ghanaians.
He asked the Commission to take into account the wishes of the people of Ghana in the discharge of their work so that it would be accepted and approved by all the people.
President Mills pledged the government's cooperation with the commission.
The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Mrs Betty-Mould Iddrisu, commended President Mills for the imitative and donors for supporting the exercise.
She said the Constitution Review Commission was a multi-disciplinary multiparty body mandated to review over 40 articles of the 1992 Constitution within 12 months.
Mrs Iddrisu said she was confident the Commission would be able to carry out its work satisfactorily because of that the calibre of members.
Prof. Fiadjoe on behalf of the members also thanked the President for the opportunity given them to serve the nation and underscored that the commission was an independent body mandated to discharge its duty, under the Constitutional Instrument that established it.
He said members were mindful of the fact that the output of the exercise, if accepted by the government, could help to shape the destiny and future direction of Ghana.
Prof. Fiadjoe assured the nation that the Commission would listen to public views and concerns of Ghanaians and work to the advancement and cohesion of the nation.