Chairman of the 9th Council of State, Edward Doe-Adjaho has told members of the council to abandon their individual inclinations and infuse the wealth of their collective views as council members to guide their deliberations.
He told the members that the Council is not justified in providing information, statements, or disseminating the contents of its advice and recommendation to a third party.
That is the underlying essence of their meetings in camera and oaths of secrecy, he said.
The former Speaker of Parliament added that where their engagements are to be in public, there is a burden of cautionary discretion that they ought to exercise.
“May I kindly request that we respect these noble requirements and balance them with the needs of the state,” he said
In his welcome address at the orientation for members of the 9th Council of State held at Peduase Valley Resort on Monday 24th February 2025, he said “We all bring something special to this unique council and do have the responsibility to preserve our image and integrity. Every team member must feel valued and appreciated for the unique qualities he or she brings to this council. We must therefore be transparent and collaborative in what we seek to do and appreciate the shades of opinion and the unique insights as well as the perspectives that may come up at the council’s deliberations on presidential referrals and in recommendations to His Excellency the president and institutions of governance.
“This gathering marks an important chapter in our journey as a council. Distinguished statesmen and women, the duty of giving advice and recommendation to the president has been known and long-standing as stipulated in the 1992 Constitution. Council is a government institution with duty on providing advice and recommendation to the president as referred to in Article 89 of the Constitution of the Republic.”
He further reminded them that their job is to carry out the function of advice and recommendations relating to the implementation of executive and legislative functions of state.
“As we proceed further with our orientation, it is expected that topics chosen for this program such as; The Mandate of the Council, Modus Operandi And Committees of the Council of State, The Council of State Secretariat, Work Program of the Council among others, will offer us more insights into the tasks ahead of us. I expect these sessions to be as interactive as possible and I encourage you to engage fully and make the most out of this initial opportunity.
“Valued Council members, it is important to abandon our individual inclinations and infuse the wealth of our collective views as council members to guide our deliberations. The Council is not justified in providing information, statements, and / or disseminate the contents of its advice and recommendation to a third-party. That is the underlying essence of our meetings in camera and oaths of secrecy. Where our engagements are to be in public, there is a burden of cautionary discretion we ought to exercise. May I kindly request that we respect these noble requirements and balance them with the needs of state.
“Colleagues, our advice and recommendations must be credible as the President has access to multiple sources of those. Let us not overlook the fact that as president, he is better placed to evaluate our advice and recommendations. Our work and tenure intrinsically hinged onto that of H.E. the President. Indeed, we are a creation of the constitution and not, an institution unto itself.”
He further explained that though they provide independent advice, they are not an independent constitutional body in the true sense of the term.
Referencing Paragraph 46 of the Report of the Committee of Experts on Proposal for a draft Constitution of Ghana, he said the Committee of Experts justified the role of the Council of State as follows:
‘It may be argued that some of the areas to be assigned to the Council of State fall within the normal purview of Cabinet advice. However, there is no assurance that Cabinet will not be dominated by purely partisan considerations in its advisory functions.
In view of the President’s role as the guarantor of the Constitution, the territorial integrity and general well-being of the nation, as well as being the symbol of unity, he or she should have the benefit of the advice of a truly national body.’
“We expected to chart pathways towards our work and we owe responsibilities to the good people of Ghana. Let us try to offer fresh ideas from our accomplishments, the depth of our traditional leadership wisdom, private and public experiences to give deep meaning to our tasks and advance the needs of Ghanaians and not the political class. Let our work reflect the exigencies of the time, address the dejection, attend to the expectation of our youth, deal directly with the realities of the world and make our nation great and strong.
Valued Council members, he added, “let us endeavor to put people first. Upholding the law and ensuring genuine care for people must be paramount in our deliberations when we proffer advice to the president of the republic. We must speak truth to those that we advise, engage with leadership and the people, connect with policy decisions to tackle the challenges facing our democracy. It is the surest way our deliberations at all times can benefit both government and the Ghanaian public. Our performance, evaluations and recommendations, will speak to the relevance of the ninth council. My dear council members, we hold the potentials of a soft power, a force for impacting lives and addressing the ills of our governance and in aiding to re-shape the direction of state. Ghana deserve better and a lot is expected from this particular council. Let us be guided by the turmoil in the sub region and citizens’ mistrust in the political class and leadership. Valued council members, let us bequeath a better deal to our children and grandchildren. Once again, I extend a warm welcome to you all. Let us have a productive event. I thank you for your attention and commitment to serve mother Ghana.”
