President of Ghana

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President of the Republic of Ghana
Flag of Ghana
Incumbent John Atta Mills since 7 January 2009
Style	His Excellency
Residence	Golden Jubilee House
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Inaugural holder	Kwame Nkrumah Republic established Jerry John Rawlings Current Constitution
Formation	Republic Day 1 July 1960 1992 Constitution 15 May 1992
Website	http://www.presidency.gov.gh, http://www.ghana.gov.gh

Ghana

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Ghana

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The President of Ghana is the elected head of state and head of government of Ghana. Officially styled President of the Republic of Ghana and Commander-in-Chief of the Ghanaian Armed Forces. The current President of Ghana is Prof. John Atta Mills, who took office in January 2009.

Eligibility

According to Chapter 8. Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, a person shall not be qualified for election as the President of Ghana unless -

(a) he is a citizen of Ghana by birth (or both parents must have been born in Ghana);

(b) he has attained the age of forty years; and

(c) he is a person who is otherwise qualified to be elected a Member of Parliament, except that the disqualifications set out in paragraphs (c),

(d), and (e) of clause (2) of article 94 of this Constitution shall not be removed, in respect of any such person, by a presidential pardon or by the lapse of time as provided for in clause (5) of that article.

Oath of office

The president of Ghana must be sworn in by the Chief Justice before people of Ghana at the Independence Square in Accra. The president-elect must repeat the following:

I, _______________ having been elected to the high office of President of the Republic of Ghana do (in the name of the Almighty God swear) (solemnly affirm) that I will be faithful and true to the Republic of Ghana; that I will at all times preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana; and that I dedicate myself to the service and well-being of the people of the Republic of Ghana and to do right to all manner of persons. I further (solemnly swear) (solemnly affirm) that should I at any time break this oath of office I shall submit myself to the laws of the Republic of Ghana and suffer the penalty for it. (So help me God.)

Residence

The President of Ghana's official residence was Osu Castle (also known as Fort Christiansborg or Christiansborg Castle) in Accra. In 2007, the opposition MPs in Ghana stormed out of a parliamentary debate on whether to take out a $50m loan to build a new presidential palace. MPs from President John Kufuor's New Patriotic Party voted unanimously in favour of taking the loan from India.

They argued that the President should not be based in Osu Castle, where slaves used to be kept. The opposition National Democratic Congress said the money would be better spent elsewhere. The old flagstaff house used by Ghana's first president as a residence is being renovated into a museum, while the grounds on which it stands is being built up as an ultra modern office complex and residence for the president and vice-president of Ghana as well as their staff. The new presidential palace was expected to be completed by August 2008 but was finally completed in November 2008. At the inauguration of the new presidential palace, President John Kufuor revealed to the press that the new name of the palace would be Golden Jubilee House. The chosen name had drawn lots of criticism from Ghanaians in the country and abroad. The name was chosen in reference to the 50th anniversary of Ghana's Independence. Many Ghanaians considered this move a waste especially with Ghana's economy in serious trouble by the then NPP Government.

The newly built residency has not been officially occupied by John Atta Mills. Though part of the office space has been given to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is claimed that most of the work in the residency is not completed, not forgetting excuses of security risk attached to its close location to a highway as well as sharing a wall with the French Embassy. Despite this, the original name has been restored to Flagstaff House.

Insignia

After the oath of office has been taken by the elected president, these following insignia are handed over to the president. These devices are used to display the rank of his office and are used on special occasions.

• President's Sword (image)

Latest election

See also

• List of heads of state of Ghana

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v t e      Heads of state and Prime Ministers of the Republic of Ghana      Presidents (1960-Present) Nkrumah • Ankrah † • Afrifa † • Ollennu* • Akufo-Addo • Acheampong † • Akuffo † • Rawlings † • Limann • Rawlings • Kufuor • Mills Prime Ministers (1957-1960; 1969-1972) Kwame Nkrumah (1957-60) • Kofi Abrefa Busia (1969-72) † military     * interim