Ghana’s Parliament has taken a historic step by passing the Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill 2022 into law, effectively abolishing the death penalty from the country’s statutes. Under the new law, individuals found guilty of murder will be sentenced to life imprisonment, pending the president’s assent.
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, deferred the decision on the bill’s report to involve more Members of Parliament (MPs) in the decision-making process. The objective of the Bill is to reform Ghana’s criminal justice system to align with international best practices, ushering in an emerging society.
Francis-Xavier Sosu, the proponent of the private member Bill and MP for Madina, contends that since Ghana has not executed anyone since 1993, it has become an “abolitionist de facto state.” The global shift away from the death penalty towards life imprisonment is another reason to repeal the death sentence.
The passage of the bill sparked debates within the House, with some MPs opposing it. However, following parliamentary democracy principles, the majority carried the day. Sosu argued that political and religious consensus had been reached to abolish this “colonial relic” inherited by the Ghanaian government.
Though the bill received support, some MPs sought provisions for the conditions under which presidential pardons could be granted to ensure judicious use of the power. Proposals were made to allow pardon eligibility for murder convicts after serving 25 years in prison.
Ghana’s history with the death penalty includes 49 executions, mainly during military regimes. The last group to be executed comprised 12 individuals in July 1993 for armed robbery and murder. With this new legislation, Ghana joins the ranks of nations moving away from capital punishment and towards a more humane criminal justice system.
